Transitioning to a New Horizon: Exploring the

drivers, barriers, and success factors for

Norwegian Offshore service vessel firms’ transition
from Oil and Gas to the Offshore Wind Industry

Candidate name: Benny Alex

University of South-Eastern Norway

Faculty of Technology, Natural Sciences and Maritime Sciences

Master Thesis
May 2023

1
Abstract
The Norwegian offshore service vessel (OSV) sector is playing a major role in the oil and gas
industry. But the climate changes and the consequences is demanding for more sustainable
energy sources the world can rely on. This has in recent years, led to growing awareness of the
need for sustainable business practices, and offshore wind industry have emerged an alternative
sustainable energy source. An industry that present new opportunities for the Norwegian
offshore service vessel firms in order to transit from carbon intensive oil and gas industry to a
low emission and sustainable offshore wind industry.

Some of the Norwegian OSV firms have already started their transition into the new industry
while the majority is still lacking behind. Therefore this study aim to explore and identify the
factors that affect the transition of Norwegian OSV firms from Oil and gas industry to Offshore
wind industry. In particular, the transition drivers, barrier and success factors was explored by
interviewing 6 industry experts.

The findings resulted in identifying four drivers, seven barriers, and eight success factors that
need to be considered for a successful transition. The study reveals that the foremost drivers
for transitioning Norwegian OSV firms to the offshore wind industry are economical, while
the primary barriers are fiduciary duty, low time charter rates and margins, high investment
costs, high credit barriers, O&G barriers, technical barriers, lack of political support, and
project scale. The success factors for OSV firms in this transition are having a clear and
narrative vision, strong firm capabilities, collaboration, innovation, sustainable business
models, communication, political support, project scale.

The study contributes to the existing body of knowledge in the field of transition management
and sustainability in the Norwegian OSV segment, and it provides valuable insights for OSV
firms navigating the transition to the offshore wind industry. Future studies may explore the
interconnections and the impact of these factors on the transition of Norwegian OSV firms

Keywords
Norwegian offshore shipping, OSV, offshore wind, business transition, transition drivers,
transition barriers, transition success factors

2
Acknowledgement
I want to express my sincere gratitude to the companies and experts who generously
participated in this research. Their invaluable insights, experience, and knowledge have greatly
contributed to the success of this study. I am grateful for their time, patience, and willingness
to share their expertise with me.

I would also like to thank my family and friends for their unwavering support, encouragement,
motivation, and strength they provided me to complete this thesis.

I am also grateful to the staff at my university for their guidance, assistance, and support during
this academic endeavor. Their expertise and commitment to excellence have been instrumental
in shaping my academic and personal growth.

Finally, I sincerely thank my supervisor Umar Burki for his guidance, feedback, and
constructive criticism throughout this project. His expertise and patience have been vital in
shaping this research.

3
Table of Contents
Abstract ..................................................................................................................................... 2
Keywords .................................................................................................................................. 2
Acknowledgement .................................................................................................................... 3
Table and Figures list .............................................................................................................. 6
Abbreviations ........................................................................................................................... 7
1.0 Introduction ........................................................................................................................ 8
1.1 Research question ........................................................................................................ 10
1.2 Purpose and contribution of the study ...................................................................... 11
1.3 Paper structure ............................................................................................................ 11
2. Theoretical framework ...................................................................................................... 12
2.1 Norwegian OSV firms transition to Offshore wind industry in a multilevel
perspective.......................................................................................................................... 12
3. Literature review ............................................................................................................... 14
3.1 Review of the Offshore service vessel segment ......................................................... 15
3.1.1 Services area and vessel type of Norwegian OSV firms .................................... 16
3.2 Review of the Offshore wind industry ....................................................................... 18
3.2.1 Vessel requirements in OWP ............................................................................... 19
3.3 Transition drivers........................................................................................................ 21
3.4 Transition barriers ...................................................................................................... 23
3.5 Success factors for transition ..................................................................................... 25
3.6 Summary of literature review .................................................................................... 28
4 Method ................................................................................................................................. 31
4.1 Addressing challenges for the research ..................................................................... 32
4.2 Research design ........................................................................................................... 32
4.3 Data collection ............................................................................................................. 35
4.3.1 Themes and concepts for data collection ............................................................ 35
4.3.2 Literature review method..................................................................................... 36
4.3.3 Primary data collection ........................................................................................ 38
4.4 Ethical considerations ................................................................................................. 39
4.5 Data analysis ................................................................................................................ 40
4.5.1 Presentation of coding .......................................................................................... 41
5. Analysis and Results .......................................................................................................... 42
5.1 Transition drivers........................................................................................................ 43
5.1.1 Green investment as political driver ................................................................... 43
5.1.2. Economic drivers ................................................................................................. 44

4
 5.1.3 Transferable competence ..................................................................................... 48
5.2 Transition barriers ...................................................................................................... 50
5.2.1 The O&G barriers ................................................................................................ 51
5.2.2 Economic barriers ................................................................................................. 52
5.2.3 The technical barrier ............................................................................................ 59
5.2.4 Lack of political support ...................................................................................... 60
5.3 Success factor for transition ....................................................................................... 62
5.3.1 clear and narrative vision ..................................................................................... 62
5.3.2 Capabilities as success factor ............................................................................... 63
5.3.3 Collaboration ......................................................................................................... 65
5.3.4 Innovation as a success factor .............................................................................. 66
5.3.5 Business model as a success factor ...................................................................... 67
5.3.6. Communication .................................................................................................... 69
5.3.7 Political support .................................................................................................... 70
A summary of analysis ...................................................................................................... 73
6. Discussion............................................................................................................................ 74
6.1 The transition drivers ................................................................................................. 76
6.1.1 Green investment as political driver ................................................................... 76
6.1.2 Growing market opportunity and risk spreading as transition drivers .......... 77
6.1.3 Transferable competence as driving force .......................................................... 78
6.1.4 Summary of the transition drivers ...................................................................... 78
6.2 Transition barriers ...................................................................................................... 79
6.2.1 Economic barriers and O&G barrier ................................................................. 79
6.2.2 The technical barrier ............................................................................................ 81
6.2.3 Lack of political support ...................................................................................... 82
6.3 Success factors ............................................................................................................. 84
6.3.1 A clear and narrative vision ................................................................................. 84
6.3.2 Capabilities and collaboration ............................................................................. 85
6.3.3 Innovation and business model ............................................................................ 86
6.3.4 Communication and political support ................................................................ 87
6.3.5 Summary of the success factors ........................................................................... 89
6.4 Research limitation ..................................................................................................... 89
7. Conclusion .......................................................................................................................... 90
Bibliography ........................................................................................................................... 92
Appendix 1- interview guide ............................................................................................... 100

5
Table and Figures list
Figure 1: The multilevel perspective on transition by Geels (2002). ...................................... 13
Figure 2: The figure illustrate the different Norwegian OSV firms and the vessels they uses
for value creation (Dokkum, 2003, pp. 60–67)........................................................................ 17
Figure 3: The chart by Fernández (2023) shows total global offshore wind capacity till year
2022. According to Fernández (2023) in 2022 did the total capacity exceeded GW. ............. 18
Figure 4: An overview of the main concept that are explored through literature review. ....... 29
Figure 5: The figure illustrates the overall work process for this thesis. It shows the research
design for presenting research. ................................................................................................ 34
Figure 6:The figure below gives and overview of the number of participated company,
participants their positions and experience in the company. ................................................... 39
Figure 7: The figure illustrates the methods and techniques that was used in the data analysis
process...................................................................................................................................... 40
Figure 8: The figure visualize the code structure, orange is drivers, blue is barrier and grey is
the success factors .................................................................................................................... 41
Figure 9: Chart of the Economic driver (the dark blue circle) and its sub-themes (light blue).
.................................................................................................................................................. 44
Figure 10: The chart is showing 5 themes (brown) with their corresponding sub-themes (light
brown) which is identified as transition barriers for Norwegian OSV firms transition to
offshore wind. .......................................................................................................................... 50

Table 1: Overview of the themes and the chronological order they will be presented in, in this
chapter. ..................................................................................................................................... 42
Table 2: The table shows the contribution of each participants on the different economic
barriers ..................................................................................................................................... 52
Table 3: Table below presents the results of the thematic coding ........................................... 73
Table 4: The table present the transition factors from literature and from the primary data
collection. Yellow=contradicting with findings, Green= new findings. .................................. 75
Table 5: The transition driver, barriers and success factors are organized in the table. .......... 91

6
Abbreviations

• OSV: Offshore service vessel/ offshore shipping company

• OWP: Offshore wind power

• O&G: Oil and gas

• WTIV: Wind turbine installation vessels

• SOV: Service operation vessel

• CSOV: Construction support operation vessel

• ROV: Remotely operated vehicles

• HVL: Heavy lift vessel

• HTL: Heavy transport vessel

• AHTV: Anchor handling tug vessel

• MSV: multipurpose support vessel

• CLV: Cable laying vessel

• PLV: Pipelaying vessel

• GW: Gigawatt

7
1.0 Introduction
Norway's offshore service vessel segment (OSV) has played a significant role in the country's
economy for many years, primarily serving in the oil and gas industry (Basso, et al., 2022., p.
30). The Norwegian OSV companies are owners and operators of specialized vessels to support
offshore markets and activities like Oil and Gas, Patrolling, Research and surveys and other
offshore related activities, as well as underwater activities. The main type of vessel in the OSV
segment is a seismic vessel, construction vessel, supply vessel, anchor handling vessel, and
other offshore-related special vessels, such as cable layers and diving support vessels
(Dokkum, 2003, p. 59; Jakobsen & Espelien, 2011, p. 4). The Norwegian OSV segment have
developed advanced technological capabilities and expertise in operating in harsh
environments, which has made Norwegian Offshore service vessel companies highly
competitive globally (Borch & Solesvik, 2015; Jakobsen & Espelien, 2011, p. 4).

In recent years, there has been a growing awareness of the need for sustainable business
practices, particularly in the energy sector. Regulatory pressure such as the Paris Agreement
which is legally binding international treaty, and regulatory bodies such as EU and UN have is
now forcing all businesses, including Norwegian OSV segment to reduce their activities in
carbon intensive business areas(Bidmon & Knab, 2018; Nations, 2015). Such macro-level
measures from regulatory bodies have led to momentum in alternative energy sources to Oil
and gas. One such business area that has expanded considerably in recent years is offshore
wind (Govindan, 2023; Koh & Ng, 2016, pp. 1–3). This industry is presenting an alternative
business area for Norwegian OSV companies(Eivind et al., 2020, pp. 6-7,47-49; Govindan,
2023).

The OSV firms are essential actors that plays a significant role in developing the offshore wind
industry as their services are pivotal in all phases of offshore wind farm projects, from
exploration, installation, maintenance and decommissioning(Kolakowski & Rutkowski, 2022).
Therefore, a transition of OSV firms from Oil and Gas to offshore wind is crucial to achieving
sustainable energy goals. A transition is a disruptive change from one socio-system to another
system, which can happen on different level of a sociotechnical system. The offshore wind
industry rapidly expands and presents a significant growth opportunity for OSV companies.
The knowledge and expertise developed in the O&G industry are highly transferable to the
offshore wind industry, and Norwegian Offshore service vessel companies are well-positioned

8
to take advantage of this opportunity. Although, a transition from O&G to offshore wind will
not be without challenges. A transition is a long-term process which need to be managed
carefully because of the complexity of changing a company’s core value creation from one
value chain to another(Andreassen et al., 2021, pp. 21–25; Kolakowski & Rutkowski, 2022, p.
383; Norwegian Shipowners’ Association, 2022).

Despite the emergence of some Norwegian OSV frontrunners transitioning to the offshore wind
industry(Bergek et al., 2021; DOF Subsea, n.d.; Renewables - Siem Offshore, n.d.; Solstad
Renewable, n.d.; Subsea 7, n.d.), a majority of firms remain behind. Even new companies have
been stablished by collaboration between two or more companies, for example WIndstaller
Alliance and Edda wind. Additionally, Afewerki et al., (2019) is reporting that out of 97
participated Norwegian maritime firms in their research, only 13 have their core business in
offshore wind. This highlights that such a transition is affected by some factors. Furthermore,
there is a gap in understanding the factors that affect the transition of Norwegian OSV firms
from the oil and gas industry to offshore wind.

While some studies have examined transition factors for several other industries, there is still
a lack of empirical evidence on the drivers, barriers, and success factors that impact this
transition of Norwegian offshore service vessel firms. Therefore, this study will investigate the
factors that affect the transition of Norwegian OSV firms from oil and gas to offshore wind
and provide empirical evidence to fill this research gap.

After conducting a literature search on the Norwegian OSV segment and OSV segment in
general, it was found that much of the current research focuses on vessel logistics in offshore
wind. Asgarpour, (2016), Endrerud et al. (2014), Guo et al. (2022), Kaiser & Snyder (2012)
Lerche et al. (2022) Paterson et al. (2018), Spielmann et al. (2021) Tusar & Sarker (2023)
discuss the logistical challenges faced by offshore service vessels in the offshore wind industry.
On the other hand, Gaidai et al. (2020) Igba et al. (2014), Markus et al. (2013) and Okoro et al.
(2021) focus on the engineering and technical aspects of offshore wind, with little emphasis on
the involvement of OSVs.

Additionally, some research has been conducted on the transition of maritime industries,
including adopting low-carbon and zero-emission fuel solutions by OSV firms in their ships
(Bach et al., 2020; Bergek et al., 2021; Pettit et al., 2018; Stalmokaitė & Yliskylä-Peuralahti,
2019). While two other Norwegian studies have contributed to the field of sustainable business
9
model for Norwegian OSV firms, but these studies do not focus on the transition from one
industry to another.

None of the above-mentioned researches have dealt with transition of OSVs from one business
area to another. To the best of my knowledge the factors that affect the transition of OSV has
either been included in transition management research. This paper identifies the research gap
on OSV firms’ transition to offshore wind and highlights the need for further exploration and
investigation.

The research question will be operationalized by focusing on the transition of Norwegian OSV
segment because the firms are in different state in the transition phase. The research question
is formulating the factors into transition driver, transition barriers and transition success factors,
in order to differentiate the influencing factors. The presenting research will contribute to
identifying the drivers, barriers, and success factors for the transition of Norwegian offshore
service vessel companies from oil and gas to offshore wind. The research question for this
thesis is formulated in chapter 1.2.

1.1 Research question

What are the drivers, barriers and success factors for Norwegian Offshore service vessel
companies in their transition from oil and gas industry to the offshore wind industry?

This research question aims to investigate the factors that affect the transition of Norwegian
offshore service vessel companies from the oil and gas industry to the offshore wind industry.
The question seeks to identify the drivers, which are factors that motivate or facilitate the
transition; the barriers, which are factors that hinder or impede the transition; and the success
factors, which are factors that will determine the successful transition. This research will
contribute to filling the gap in empirical studies on transition that Offshore service vessel
companies faces to reach decarbonization goals through the sustainable business areas:
offshore wind industry.

10
1.2 Purpose and contribution of the study
The findings of this study will contribute to the academic literature on transition management
and sustainability in the Norwegian offshore service vessel segment. Additionally, the results
of this study will provide valuable insights to Norwegian OSV companies as they navigate
through the transition from the oil and gas industry to the offshore wind industry. Specifically,
the study will help these companies make rational and strategic decisions regarding their
business operations and investments in the offshore wind energy sector.

Overall, this study has significant implications for the sustainability of the OSV segment in
Norway, as it explores the potential for OSV companies to adapt to the changing market
conditions and contribute to the development of a more sustainable energy system.

1.3 Paper structure

The Chapter 1 with introduction is followed by Chapter 2 which is theory section which
presents the theoretical framework and OSV segment and Offshore wind industry. The third
chapter will explore in-depth the key components in the research question in existing literature.
Chapter 4 is a methodology section that will describe the qualitative research design and
approaches used to build the presenting research. Chapter 5 of this paper present the results
from the data collection. And Chapter 6 will discuss and answer the research question before
drawing a conclusion in chapter 7.

11
2. Theoretical framework
This section will provide a theoretical framework for understanding what transition is in
business science and an introduction to how transition will be viewed throughout this research
paper. Norwegian OSV firms and Offshore wind industry will be incorporated into the
presenting framework in order to understand the factors that affect OSV firms’ movement from
Oil and gas- to Offshore wind industry.

2.1 Norwegian OSV firms transition to Offshore wind industry in a

multilevel perspective
Transition can be defined as nonlinear and disruptive long-term paradigm shift from one
equilibrium to another of a socio-technical system, where transition management practices can
be used to governance the changes on three different levels of the system. This model is called
the multilevel perspective and is widely accepted and used by researchers (Geels, 2002;
Loorbach & Wijsman, 2013).

These three levels are namely niche, regime and landscape. Niche refers to a micro-level
perspective of a system where firms develops of new technologies, practices, and business
models that challenge the dominant regime. In the case of the Norwegian OSV firms, the
emergence of the offshore wind industry represents a new niche that offers new opportunities
for innovation and growth. By examining the technological and organizational innovations that
are driving the offshore wind industry, one can identify the potential of this niche to challenge
the oil and gas regime. In other words, this perspective can help to find potential driver for
Norwegian OSV firms transition to Offshore wind (Hernández-Chea et al., 2021).

This second level is characterized by a dominant culture, institutional practices, technological

and cultural structures. For example, oil and gas regime has been dominant for several decades,
and its institutional, technological, and cultural characteristics have been well established. By
analyzing the factors that have maintained the oil and gas regime in the face of the emerging
offshore wind regime, one can identify the barrier Norwegian OSV firms will face because of
established regime of Oil and gas. This can indicate lock-in factors, structural stability factors
and more. Such a view of transition will also help to identify the factors for success of a
transition from one regime to another(Bidmon & Knab, 2018; Mäkitie et al., 2019).

12
The last level, landscape focus on the broader aspects of a system where niche and regime is
embedded under it. For example political trends, climate changes, paradigms, global challenges
are factors that will decide the overall landscape of a society. In the case of the Norwegian

Figure 1: The multilevel perspective on transition by Geels (2002).

OSV firms, the landscape is characterized by increasing pressure to reduce greenhouse gas
emissions and shift towards renewable energy sources. This broader context creates
opportunities for Norwegian OSV in the emergence of the offshore wind regime and may help
to drive its growth and adoption. But the limiting factors from landscape level can also be
identified(Geels, 2011; Hernández-Chea et al., 2021).

According to Geels (2002) a sociotechnical system will be a dynamic picture where the
influences to transition will be coming from Socio-technical landscapes, Socio-technical
regime, and Niche level. Geels multilevel perspective model as shown in Figure 2 is presenting
the sociotechnical system in a matrix where transition will roll out over time and all
sociotechnical levels will influence a transition in the system.

The Multilevel perspective framework will help understand where the drivers, barriers comes
from and what kind of factors facilitated a successful transition. According to this model
presenting research is looking for the mentioned factor that influence transition of a niche

13
(Norwegian OSV firms) from one regime (O&G) to another regime (Offshore wind industry).
The next heading will provide an overview of the Norwegian OSV niche.

3. Literature review
As presented in the introduction the research question of this studies is to address drivers,
barrier and success factors for Norwegian OSV firms’ transition from Oil and gas industry to
Offshore wind industry. Thus, this chapter will provide an overview of the current state of the
Norwegian OSV segment and its services, before reviewing Offshore wind industry current
state. Thereafter reviewing literatures to identify drivers, barriers and success factors for
Norwegian OSV firms transition to Offshore wind industry. This section will review previous
studies in order to understand the current state of the topic and to provide a framework for this
studies data collection, analysis and interpretation. The findings on transition drivers, barrier
and success factors will be organized in a table in the summary section of the literature review
chapter.

There is lack of empirical studies on drivers, barriers and success factors for business transition
of Offshore service vessel firm and maritime industry in general limits access to accurate
factors. Munim et al. (2020) and Parola et al. (2021) are among the studies that address the gap
in literatures on digital transformation (niche innovation), which is an important part of nice
actors’ steps towards the transition. These statements in the recent studies indicate the lack of
focus on transition areas for Maritime cluster, including OSV firms. Therefore, the objective
of this research is to provide a better understanding of the existing knowledge on the subject
and highlight the gaps in empirical studies on presenting topic, and at the same time, provide a
foundation for the research of this thesis.

Because of the gap, the literature search process will therefore not only review studies on the
OSV and OWP, but the search process will be extended to other industries, for example among
others O&G industry other maritime segments. Identified the key concept of the research
question through literature review will help to evaluate the relevance and validity through
primary data collection.

14
3.1 Review of the Offshore service vessel segment
The offshore service vessel firms are the owners and operators of specialized vessels to support
markets and activities like Oil and Gas, Patrolling, Research and surveys and other offshore
related activities, as well as underwater activities. The main type of vessel in the OSV segment
is a seismic vessel, construction vessel, supply vessel, anchor handling vessel, and other
offshore-related special vessels, such as cable layers and diving support vessels (Dokkum,
2003, p. 59; Jakobsen & Espelien, 2011, p. 4).

The Norwegian offshore service vessel industry has been developed since early 1970 and has
gained a leading position worldwide. The industry has played a significant role in Norway’s
offshore energy sector and provided high-quality services to build and maintain the oil and gas
regime(Jakobsen & Espelien, 2011, p. 4). However the industry has faced challenges recently
due to the 2014-2016 oil crises, political uncertainty, and changing user demands. It has
therefore been affected by an oversupply of vessels and depressed market conditions, where
the turnover of the OSV industry in 2022 was 56 billion NOK, almost half of what it was in
2014 (Norwegian Shipowners’ Association, 2022, p. 8). However, the market has gained
momentum and has started to heal, according to the data from Clarkson shipping intelligent
network (Clarkson Shipping Intelligent Weekly, 2023)

The Norwegian offshore service vessel industry provides various services such as inspection,
exploration, operation, maintenance and repair, transportation of personnel and equipment, and
supply to offshore mobile unit support, among others. There are about 500 vessels controlled
by around 50 offshore shipping companies in Norway (Jakobsen & Espelien, 2011, p. 6; Vessel
Type by Clarkson, 2023). The Norwegian OSV firms have specialized in different areas to
provide service to the offshore O&G industry. These services are transferable to OWP industry
and present services from in exploration of new sites, geological analysis, cable laying and
subsea operations, installation, maintenance and operation, and decommissioning of offshore
wind farms (Andreassen et al., 2021, p. 9; Kolakowski & Rutkowski, 2022, p. 383).

15
3.1.1 Services area and vessel type of Norwegian OSV firms
As mentioned above the Norwegian OSV firms provide different type of services with required
vessels which also vary. This niche have been dominated by the O&G industry regime
structures and have consequently diversified and specialize in different services with different
vessel types to serve this industry. Norwegian OSV firms can be distinguished by these
operational areas.

The first group of firms are called Seismic firms and uses only one type of ships: seismic ships.
Seismic companies specialize in gathering data about geological formations beneath the seabed
using seismic exploration technology. Seismic companies then sell this information to
exploration and production drilling companies, who use it to identify potential oil and gas
reserves and decide where to (Dokkum, 2003, p. 61; Jakobsen & Espelien, 2011, pp. 14–17).

In the exploration- and production drilling phase will the incumbents such as Equinor, Asker
BP, Vår Energy charter offshore vessels form OSV companies. Exploration and drilling phase
belongs to the oil and gas extractor, but several offshore vessels with different objectives are
charter to support this phase.

One of the companies involved in exploration, development, and production is the heavy cargo
transportation firm. This type of firm specializes in vessels equipped with the necessary
equipment and services to transport heavy cargoes, such as rigs, subparts, accommodation
platforms and platforms to construction site. These firms have the vessels and knowledge to
handle lifting and installation operation of these heavy cargoes. Typically, these vessels are
semi-submersible in design, and are also involved in the decommissioning phase of offshore
(Dokkum, 2003, pp. 62–63).

Other active actors in this phase is subsea companies who operates highly specialized subsea
ships with advanced equipment to provide services such as installation, maintenance and repair
of underwater equipment and facilities in the oil and gas industry. This can include everything
from subsea pipelines and cables to subsea technology for production and inspection. The
vessels can also be specialized in different areas, for example cable laying ships, DSV ships
are differently built. But some can have integrated functions inbuilt. These companies uses
subsea ships with advance technology to conduct underwater operations in the oil and gas
(Jakobsen & Espelien, 2011, pp. 11–12).

16
Operators of offshore supply ships are another type of OSV actors who are active in every
phases of oil and gas activity. These firms uses different type of support ships, such as PSV,
AHTS, MSV and specialized crew ships to support the O&G companies with supply of
cargoes, equipment, transport of personnel to and from the platforms. Operators of support
vessels can be specialized firms who provide only these services, or it can also be firms who
provides different types of offshore services with different vessels. For example, Havila
shipping have AHTS, PSV and subsea ships in their fleet(Dokkum, 2003, pp. 66–67; Havila
Shipping ASA • Havila Shipping ASA, n.d.; Jakobsen & Espelien, 2011, pp. 7–8).

Figure 2: The figure illustrate the different Norwegian OSV firms and the vessels they uses for value creation
(Dokkum, 2003, pp. 60–67)

There are many types of OSV companies in Norway who are either specialized in one business
domain and have one type of vessels to take part in the O&G industry value chain, and those
who have diversified their portfolio and provides integrated services within many business
areas with different type of vessels. However the Norwegian OSV niche actors can be
differentiated by four main business areas. These areas are Seismic, Heavy cargo transportation
companies, subsea companies and offshore support companies. The figure below shows the
different types of ship they uses.

17
3.2 Review of the Offshore wind industry
The offshore wind energy is a clean and renewable energy source that can be captured by using
wind turbines at high seas where the wind is constant and more forceful than onshore because
there are no barriers to reduce the force of the wind(CORPORATIVA, n.d.)

The latest offshore wind turbines are capable of producing up to 9.5 GW of electricity(Wind
Energy – Going Offshore, n.d.). However, these turbines vary in size and dimension, with
current models having a rotor diameter of 158 meters and 220-meter blades currently under
construction. Hub heights of approximately 100 meters are common, and the turbines
themselves weigh more than 200 metric tons (Palmer, 2021). These dimensions are subject to
change depending on the turbine type and installation location (Palmer, 2021). The turbines
are megastructures continuously being developed in size and capacity to harness the most
energy possible, increasing the demand for high-quality and specialized maritime services from
OSV companies.

Globally, the total installed offshore wind capacity is 60 GW, with China accounting for 47%
of the total capacity. In 2021, a record 21.1 GW of offshore wind power capacity was installed,
a threefold increase from the previous year (Fernández, 2023; Williams et al., 2022). According
to Fernández (2023) and Williams et al. (2022), there has been an average yearly growth of
36% in offshore wind capacity globally. Williams et al. (2022) forecast that the total installed
offshore wind capacity will reach 370 GW by 2031, which means that the market will continue

Figure 3: The chart by Fernández (2023) shows total global offshore wind
capacity till year 2022. According to Fernández (2023) in 2022 did the total
capacity exceeded GW.

18
growing 21.26% per year till 2031. This numbers is indicating a significant market opportunity
for Norwegian offshore service vessel (OSV) firms in the years ahead.

According to the European Environmental Agency, offshore wind farms' most active and
important areas are the North Seas, Baltic Sea, Celtic Sea, Norwegian Sea, and Kattegat
(Andreassen et al., 2021; European Environment Agency, 2022, p. 7). However, since the
market is expanding in Asia and America, these areas present significant business opportunities
for Norwegian OSV firms. To grab these market opportunities, OSV firms must meet the
technical vessel requirements in the Offshore wind regime, which vary from the O&G regime.
3.2.1 Vessel requirements in OWP
As stated by American Clean Power the development of offshore wind farms need on average
25 vessels, including seafloor survey work, component transfer, cable laying, crew transfer,
and turbine(ACP, n.d.). The requirements for vessels used in the offshore wind industry are
unique and different from those used in the oil and gas industry. As such, not all existing
offshore service vessels are suitable for use in the offshore wind industry (Palmer, 2021).

The offshore wind industry is preferring purpose-built vessels that are compliant with industrial
requirements (Börner, 2022). The key technical requirements for vessels used in the offshore
wind industry is the ability to carry out operations, transport equipment and personnel, and
accommodate personnel safely and efficiently to and from offshore windfarm locations (ACP,
n.d.). The location of windfarms are mostly located in areas where the wind is strong which
also means the waves and offshore weather is harsh (Midttun, 2020).

OSVs used in the oil and gas industry may therefore not be efficient and safe enough to handle
the strong winds, high waves, and severe in weather conditions that can be encountered in
offshore wind projects. Equipment such as cranes, gangways, jackup legs, dynamic positioning
and heave compensation systems are some of the critical components that vessels in offshore
wind need(Ocean Energy Resources | 4 2022, 2022). Ulstein yard which is one of world’s
leading yards that builds purpose-built vessels for offshore wind industry is categorizing these
vessels in different categorizes based on their capabilities purposes.

The first one is Offshore wind support vessels, which includes Service operation vessels
(SOV), construction support vessels (CSOV) and Installation support vessels (ISV). These
vessels are built to provide efficient support services under different stages of an offshore wind
project. Are for example equipped with gangways, optimal fuel consumption solution,
19
integrated accommodation solution, cranes and sophisticated dynamic position systems since
the vessels might need to be on the sea for many days(Ulstein, n.d.). Second type I cable laying
vessels (CLV) which is similar to the vessels used in O&G operations, but the cables for
offshore wind turbines are bigger and heavier, compared to the cables in O&G (Börner, 2022;
Ulstein, n.d.).

The third type of vessel is called Subsea rock installation vessels, which is designed to build
and protect the subsea infrastructures conduction analysis of the subsea with ROVs and laying
rocks. The vessels has various equipment such as cargo hold, gears and belts to handle the
cargo. The fourth category of vessels are Offshore wind feeders, which is built to transport
wind turbine components to installation vessels(Subsea Rock Installation Vessels, n.d.)

Another type is Foundation installation vessels (FIV) which are specialized offshore wind-
industry ships to install foundation structures. It features offshore crane, a pre-piling template
at the stern, and can carry jackets, piles, and turbine components. This type of vessel is also
submersible and designed with advanced dynamic positioning systems and with propellers and
fuel solutions to reduce environmental footprint(Foundation Installation Vessels, n.d.).

The last type of purpose-built vessels for Offshore wind industry is Wind turbine installation
vessels (WTIV). These are built to install the wind turbines and are built with jack-up legs that
can lift the vessel above sea-level in order to operate regardless of the wave’s activity. The
cranes are also meat to lift heavy cargo such as the blades, turbine hub, and other heavy (Jack-
up Heavy Lift Vessels, n.d.; Paterson et al., 2018, pp. 640–642).

The OWP charterers categorizes the current OSVs accordingly to which degree they meet the
technical requirements of OSV industry. The vessels can be divided into three categories, Tier
1, Tiers 2 and Tier 3. Tier 1 vessels are according to Clarkson the purpose-built vessels that are
preferred by charterers in OWP. Tier 2 vessels are the vessels they will research out if there is
lack of Tier 1 vessels. These vessels originally served O&G industry but have later been
retrofitted and modified with necessary equipment to meet the requirements of OWP
companies. The last class is Tier 3 vessels which rents the equipment such as cranes and
gangways to work in offshore wind projects. These vessels are the last option for Offshore
wind charterers (Börner, 2022; Service Operation Vessel Upgrad, 2023). The next sub-chapter
will conduct a literature review and present how the vessel demand- and supply in Offshore
wind industry can drive Norwegian OSV firms transition towards this industry.
20
3.3 Transition drivers
The lack of vessels necessary for operating and maintaining wind farms, as noted by
Kolakowski and Rutkowski (2022), presents a significant factor to consider when examining
OSV firms' transition to the offshore wind industry. This finding offers valuable insight. A
report from the Polish Wind Energy Association have come to the same conclusion (PWEA,
2022). According to this report, even if there is an oversupply of offshore vessels, most of them
does not meet the technical requirements from offshore wind industry. The forecasts from
PWEA (2022) and also Börner (2022) based on available vessels, orderbooks and planned
offshore wind projects shows that there will be lack of vessels for offshore wind. The lack of
vessels can indicate that there is a barrier that prevents OSV firms from investing in vessels to
use in offshore wind. On the other hand, this finding shows that this can be a driver for current
offshore service vessel companies to use the market gap as an opportunity to invest in such
assets to gain market share in the renewable energy industry.

Another driver for the transition of Norwegian OSV firms to offshore wind is the increasing
freight rate for offshore wind vessels. Increasing rates can attract the stakeholder to enter the
market to increase company revenue. Clarkson reported a y-o-y fright rate growth of 30% for
W2W vessels, while Edda Wind who operates both SOV and CSOV, has reported an increase
in the daily rate of 21 % since IPO in the second half of 2021 (Edda Wind Company
Presentation, 2023; Gordon, 2023). Market analysis by Börner (2022) show that there has been
consistent growth in the CSOV segment since 2016. However, the reports do not account for
the fact that freight rates can be influenced by unpredictable and exogenous factors that may
cause declining rates. Despite this, companies are not deterred by the market's increasing
freight rates, which presents an excellent opportunity for Norwegian OSV firms to expand their
business into offshore wind.

Offshore wind is one of the sustainable energy sources that can help fight the current global
greenhouse gas emissions. It has gradually gained attention in political arenas and new
supportive polices have enabled the development of offshore windfarms in around the globe
in an exponential speed. Development of supportive polices for offshore wind and renewable
energy is driving the OWP market forward. In the past two decades have many scholar studied
the topic (Jenkins et al., 2022; Kern et al., 2014; Normann, 2015; Polzin et al., 2015; Roux et
al., 2022; Varela-Vázquez et al., 2019). Two of the studies reveals that insufficient political
decisions and underdeveloped policies led Norway and Ireland to face failure in their attempt
21
to develop offshore wind (Normann, 2015; Roux et al., 2022). Thereby underlying the
importance of political support for realizing such ambitions.

However the situation have changed as the climate changes are more evident and the
technological maturity of renewables are improving rapidly. EU have for example launched
policies to increase the development of renewable energy. Political engagement and initiation
of supportive policies for renewables is driving the transition forward (Jenkins et al., 2022).
Jenkins et al. (2022) exploratory scenario-based study on major drivers for Offshore wind in
Finland reveals that three out of four scenarios indicates Political alignment and supportive
policies as major driving forces for offshore wind power development. Normann, (2015) Roux
et al. (2022 corroborates the findings of this study as well.

Another analysis for implantation of offshore wind energy is arguing that deployment of this
new industry will be dependent on policy and also market driving factors (Varela-Vázquez et
al., 2019). In that connection, EUs new measure, Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism
(CBAM) is such a market driven factor that will force industries to switch to renewables and
open new opportunities for offshore wind as well (Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism,
n.d.)

The increasing political alignment and supportive policies for renewable energy sources are
one of the driving factors for further development of offshore wind industry, which lead to
better market conditions and stable opportunities for Norwegian OSV firms. As previously
mentioned, some Norwegian OSV firms have advanced further than others in transitioning to
the offshore wind industry. This discrepancy in the level of involvement in the indicates
presence of potential barriers hindering the transition process. Accordingly, the following sub-
chapter will delve into the existing literature to investigate the potential barriers from previous
studies.

22
3.4 Transition barriers
The ongoing paradigm shift to sustainability has increased scholars' focus on Transition
management. Consequently, the research on niche actors in the energy sector has also been
documented in recent years as individual companies plays a crucial role in sustainability
transition. This section will investigate the barriers OSV companies might faces in their
transition to offshore wind. Literature search reveals that barriers to transition for OSV firms
have not gained the attention in research. Therefore will this part extend the search area and
look for potential barriers from other industries that is transferable to OSV segment. Segments
such as shipping-, offshore wind- and oil and gas industry helps to identify potential barriers
from literatures. Relatable topics to transition such as digital transformation is also included in
this part.

The case study conducted by Mäkitie et.al (2019) is that short-term profitability plays a
significant role in the transition of O&G companies to the Offshore wind industry. The firms
are all concerned with value-creation in the short term and consequently delay the transition to
renewable business areas. The study of Sharma et al. (2023) and Sletten et al. (2023) discuss
short-term profitability as an organizational barrier to business transition for O&G companies.
High profitability for oil and gas compared to offshore wind is influencing the actor’s
willingness to change (Sletten et al., 2023). Thus, this can be perceived as a barrier to the
transition of Norwegian OSV companies towards the offshore wind as well. This barrier in
combination with high investment cost is constraining transition to sustainable businesses.

High investment cost in new technologies, resources and organizational process is considered
as an important barrier that hamper the transition to sustainable business (Sharma et al., 2023,
p. 9; Shojaeddini et al., 2019, p. 14) . Offshore vessels and equipment for OSV firms are highly
capital-intensive assets, and to invest in these in order to meet new technical requirements from
offshore wind industry can have a negative effect on companies. Investing in new technologies
is considered to be a speed breaker for OSV firms, since they have suffered many years of low
revenue and high number of vessels in lay-up because of oil crisis in 2016 and Covid-19
(Hessevik, 2022).

23
Blincoe (2022) findings presented in her book indicates that firms are obliged to generate
financial wealth (Short-term profitability) for their stakeholders, that makes it complicated and
difficult for them to align the stakeholders in sustainability goals. The analysis performed by
Sharma and colleagues reveals the same barrier and further concludes that the most influential
barrier on Oil and gas actors’ transition is the financial barrier. Their research does also further
address barrier which is lack of knowledge and skills (Sharma et al., 2023).

As previously mentioned Lack of knowledge and skills have been identified as a substantial
transition, transformation and change barrier in many studies (Lu et al., 2019; Poulsen et al.,
2017; Raza et al., 2023; Sharma et al., 2023). This factor is therefore a substantial barrier that
hamper transition of firms. According to some studies the lack of skills and knowledge is a
significant challenge for succeeding with business transition. The studies outlines that
knowledge and personnel skills in the transiting business area are lacking for for example O&G
companies and appears to be a major constrain for their transition sustainable practices (Lu et
al., 2019; Sharma et al., 2023).

Raza et al. (2023) research is consistent with the research conducted by Pagano et al. (2022)
where one of the salient point from the finding was that maritime companies struggled with
insufficient technical knowledge and skills which impede the transformation to digital practices
in shipping and logistics. This barrier is worsened by competency traps, where the people who
is working are specialized in traditional ways of doing business and lack the potential
knowledge and skills to bring change, and also change the business of the company. At the
same time, talent acquisition is getting harder as maritime industry is facing great competition
from other industries such as banking, telecom and media etc. Interviews conducted by Raza
et al. (2023) revealed that shortage of right talents in the market lead to lack of resources for
them to envision the change the company desires.

The Offshore logistic firms among other OSV firms in the long-term horizon need to invest in
personnel and skills in order to gain competitive advantage in offshore wind industry (Poulsen
& Lema, 2017). The common solution many studies have outlined is to develop better
collaboration and both closed and open innovation. The researchers point out that such
measures will minimize the impact of this barrier in their transition and transformation of
businesses (Poulsen & Lema, 2017; Raza et al., 2023; Sharma et al., 2023).

24
The lack of right knowledge and skills in transition phase is a substantial barrier that can
hamper Norwegian OSV firms transition as well. as presented above, this barrier is evident in
the research conducted by Lu et al. (2019), Poulsen et al. (2017), Raza et al. (2023), and Sharma
et al. (2023), which all point to the lack of knowledge and personnel skills as a significant
challenge for businesses transition to sustainable practices.

Since the literature review on transition barriers helped disclose some barriers that can hamper
the transition of Norwegian OSV firms, it is also important to investigate how the firms can
overcome the barriers they faces. The next section will conduct a literature review on Success
factors that can determine a transition.

3.5 Success factors for transition

Business transition requires the identification of success factors that will enable the transition.
However, identifying success factors for OSV industry in literature has been difficult because
existing literature has not directly discussed the topic, especially it have not been applied on
the presenting segment. Existing literature on sustainability transition management employs
comprehensive case studies which gives insight into how some actors succeed with the
transition. some of these success factors can be generalized and interpreted as success factors
to Norwegian OSV companies as well.

A qualitative study based on 14 case studies on critical success factors for transition to
sustainable business models is outlining clear and narrative vision as one of success factors
(Long et al., 2018). A good vision that narrate the transition to sustainable business is needed
to create awareness of the company’s transition with its employees, stakeholders and
costumers. Hernández-Chea et al., (2021) systematic literature review with two case studies
discovered that shared vision and strategic dialogues among firms in different sectors as
essential to develop value propositions and leverage business opportunities for sustainability
in the long run. Kemp et al. (2007) research is older that the Long er al. (2018) and Hernández-
Chea et al., (2021), but the finding is supportive, and according to this research a transition is
co-evolution of different actors towards a future state, which should have a collective vision in
order to navigate and succeed.

One of the literature that can be used to find success factors for business transition is conducted
by Gorissen et al. (2016). The article points out that the actual result of transition is highly
dependent on the capabilities in the process (Gorissen et al., 2016). Capabilities refers to a
25
firm's ability to execute various activities and processes effectively, leveraging its collective
knowledge, skills, resources, and systems to achieve its objectives and compete in the
marketplace. This can include technological expertise, managerial and leadership capabilities,
human resource management practices, and financial resources (Teece et al., 1997).

The research is arguing that transition is a process of learning, and its success is highly
determined by the capabilities of people who are involved in managing it. Likewise Loorbach
& Wijsman (2013) case study on the German roofing sector demonstrated that a developing
new knowledge and competence through mutual learning will facilitate a successful transition
from one business practice to another. It is also worth mentioning that researches that focus on
capabilities as a success factor is revealing that collaboration is an important factor as well in
the success of sustainability transition.

Van Kleef & Roome (2007) suggests that innovation for sustainability requires the involvement
of a diverse network of actors with local knowledge. This shift towards sustainability has
implications for the capabilities and competence needed for innovation. The research is
showing that innovation and knowledge for sustainable changes is depended on collaborative
activities by building networks and multi-actor forums. This finding is also supported by the
recent studies that highlights the importance of collaboration.

According to the recent studies collaboration between different actors is a significant factor
that enable organization to tab into a transformation of their current state. It opens up
trajectories to learn from each other and tab into cross-functional innovations which in turn
fuel a successful transition to sustainable businesses (Bag & Rahman, 2021; Gorissen et al.,
2016; Loorbach & Wijsman, 2013). Other studies outlines that collaboration and innovation in
connection is a determining factors in taking a leading position in a transition process. And that
this capabilities together will give the incumbents a strategic position (Magnusson & Werner,
2022). Especially for OSV firms which are in an environment where new trends, increasing
operational complexity and requirements of purpose-built vessels- and services affect their
competitive advantage and profitability (Borch & Solesvik, 2015).

Other critical factor that can lead to successful transition of OSV to Offshore wind is
sustainable business models and innovation. Even if these are to factors, they are highly
dependent on each other’s in facilitating a transition (Sletten et al., 2023). A business model
that is aligned with the vision for sustainable business will facilitate niche innovation, both
26
non-technological and technology which will help to breakthrough current dominating
practices to enter the new regime (Bidmon & Knab, 2018). The business models that have
dominated the segment need to be modified or changed according to the new industry and have
to be fit to drive the transition of the firm.

According to Sletten et al. (2023) there is no universal business model that applies to all
companies or field, but they suggest that the majority of companies will have introduce
innovations in various areas such as customer segments, value propositions, key resources, key
partners and cost structures to attain successful sustainability transition. This finding is
supported by the two studies which is performed on sustainable business models of Norwegian
OSV firms (Gjøsæter et al., 2021; Kyvik & Gjøsæter, 2017). The comparative case studies
provides evidence that a business model which is aligned with company vision and the core
value of the company succeed with not only doing the business but doing better business. In
other words the studies demonstrated that a good business model promotes innovation on niche
level which can be technological and non-technological. The studies also highlighting that an
innovation of new way to do businesses (non-technical innovation) and technological
innovation deemed weighted different type of resources.

Borch and Solesvik's (2015) longitudinal case study suggests that adopting open innovation,
i.e., collaborating with external partners to develop and share core capabilities, can accelerate
the innovation process and result in increased product value. This studies is providing
important linkages to the previously explored success factors such as capabilities and
collaboration. Although, open- innovation (innovation in collaboration with external actors)
gives only the deemed value when the company have strong core competence and then can
take it into the collaboration to give value for the innovation projects such as designing and
building a costume-tailored vessel (Borch & Solesvik, 2015; Kyvik & Gjøsæter, 2017).

Even if the studies on sustainability transition in other industries have identified several
success factors, they may not be directly applicable to the Norwegian OSV and Offshore wind
industry. However, by drawing from research on transition management and exploring the
OSV segment, and other industries, I have extracted factors that does not only appears to
success factors for a transition, but factors that are present a fundament for transition. These
factors can therefore be critical success factors for a transition of Norwegian OSV firms.

27
3.6 Summary of literature review
This chapter have conducted a literature review on the key concepts of the research question
in order to provide a better understanding of the existing knowledge on the subject and
highlight the gaps in empirical studies on presenting topic, and at the same time, provide a
foundation for the research of this thesis. The findings from literature review will be examined
for verifying their relevant for this study.

The offshore service vessel segment comprises specialized vessels that support various
offshore activities, including oil and gas exploration, research, and underwater operations.
Norwegian OSV firms specialize in different services and vessel types to serve the offshore oil
and gas industry, including seismic, heavy cargo transportation, subsea, and supply ships.
These services are also transferable to the offshore wind power industry. Further, available
literature, reports and outlooks on the Offshore wind energy industry indicate a rapidly growing
industry, with China currently leading with 47% of the global installed offshore wind capacity
of 60 GW. The industry is expected to grow, with an estimated total installed offshore wind
capacity of 370 GW by 2031, presenting a significant market opportunity for Norwegian
offshore service vessel firms. Purpose-built vessels with unique technical requirements are
preferred for the offshore wind industry, and Norwegian OSV firms need to meet these
requirements to take advantage of the market opportunities.

The literature review on the drivers for Norwegian offshore service vessel firms' transition
toward the offshore wind industry revealed three factors. One factor is the lack of vessels
required to operate and maintain wind farms, which presents an opportunity for Norwegian
OSV firms. Another driver is the increasing freight rate for offshore wind vessels, which can
attract stakeholders to enter the market and expand their business. The literature also highlights
the increasing political engagement and supportive policies for renewable energy, which drive
offshore wind development and create stable opportunities for Norwegian OSV firms.

28
 Figure 4: An overview of the main concept that are explored through literature review.

This literature review explores the potential barriers OSV companies face in transitioning to
offshore wind as sustainability becomes an increasingly important focus in the industry. The
study finds that short-term profitability, high investment costs, and lack of knowledge and
skills are all significant barriers that can hinder the transition of OSV firms to sustainable
practices. The lack of knowledge and skills is particularly challenging, as it affects personnel
and talent acquisition and limits the company's ability to envision change. However,
developing better collaboration and closed and open innovation can minimize the impact of
these barriers and facilitate the transition of OSV companies to sustainable practices.

Although the literature on success factors for transition is scarce, some success factors
identified through previous research from other industries and topics can be generalized and
applied to the Norwegian OSV industry. These success factors include having a clear and
narrative vision, developing capabilities, collaboration, sustainable business models, and
innovation. Success in transitioning depends on the capabilities of people managing the
process, and collaboration between different actors is essential. A sustainable business model
aligned with the company's vision and core values facilitates niche innovation, both
technological and non-technological, which is necessary to achieve successful sustainability
transitions.

29
The literature review has provided a better understanding of the research topic and the relevant
concepts for the research question. However, it has also revealed a significant gap in the
literature regarding the transition of the maritime industry, particularly in the OSV segment.
Although some areas, such as digital transformation and sustainable business models, have
received attention in recent empirical studies on the maritime industry and OSV segment, the
transition drivers, barriers, and success factors have not been thoroughly researched for either
Norwegian OSVs or OSVs in general. Addressing this gap will be the focus of this study, and
its contribution to the field will be in providing insights into this topic for the given industry.

The next chapter will delve into the methods that have been used to conduct this study. The
literature search and selection process is also explained in more detail in Chapter 4.

30
4 Method
This section will provide insight into methods used to conduct, analyze and interpret the data
that have constituted to study the research problem in this thesis.

Choosing methods to conduct analyze and interpret data will affect the quality, reliability and
the relevance of a research. Therefore should the researcher choose an appropriate method for
the respective research type. Research method is defined as techniques, tools and procedures
that researchers uses to study the research problem (Kothari, 2004, pp. 7–8; Frankfort-
Nachmias et al., 2015, pp. 12–13). Choice of methods will depend on the type of research
problem. For example, a research question that aims to find the behavior of management group
in Norwegian shipping companies will choose an exploratory question with qualitative data
collection methods to capture verbal, behavioral and symbolic information. While a research
problem that aim to find the economic growth of Norwegian shipping industries will need a
quantitative approach which will be based on numbers. The tools and procedures to collect,
analyze and interpret the data will therefore be distinct in connection with the research type.

Research methods are critical in order to carry out a systematic research which makes the study
legitimacy and at the same time provides a framework for managing the complexity of
scientific research (Indeed, 2022.). The previous research on similar research problems are
valuable supports to identify and apply suitable research methods for this thesis.

Tools used to analyze qualitative data can also be found in research papers and reliable books
like Business Research Methods by Bell et al. (2018) as well. Previous research papers and
books was be used to identify tools for data extraction, quality control and synthesis of raw
qualitative data.

This section will further explain in detail which research design are used, information about
the population and sample to investigate the problem, which data collection and data analysis
methods are used before discussing the ethical aspects that have been considered for present
paper.

31
4.1 Addressing challenges for the research
Conducting an in-depth investigation on the chosen academic topic presents several challenges.
One primary challenge is the lack of empirical data related to the OSV's transition process,
while another obstacle is finding appropriate industry experts willing to participate in an
interview due to their busy schedules. Additionally, the time constraint may compromise the
quality of the investigation.

To address these challenges, a comprehensive literature search can help bridge the academic
gap, and empirical studies on market and business transitions from other industries can provide
valuable insights. Potential participants will be contacted directly through phone calls and
email to scheduling the meetings, which was used as a method to mitigate the challenge of
recruiting appropriate industry experts. To gather rich qualitative data, a semi-structured
interview approach will be employed with experts from Norwegian OSV firms and Norwegian
Shipowner Association (NSA).

4.2 Research design

A research design will set the foundations to collect and analyze data and indicates what kind
of delimitations the research uses and what kind of aspects of a problem it seeks to solve. For
example what kind of themes and relationship between them are important, to which extend
can the interpreted data be generalized (Bell et al., 2018, p. 45).

The research problem of this thesis has an explorative characteristics that seeks to gain more
understanding of industry-related challenge. The research question seeks to explore the
barriers, driver and success factors to succeed with a transition of Norwegian OSV firms from
oil and gas to offshore wind industry. Based on Kothari (2004) work, the research question
forms the basis for an applied research where the stakeholder of Norwegian firms can apply
the findings in their decision-making process on managerial level.

Literature review on similar research problems, which is presented in chapter 3 indicates that
an explorative research like this, in the area of business science have mostly used inductive
approaches in exploratory research studies. The research of Gorissen et al. (2016), Löhr &
Mattes (2022) Loorbach & Wijsman (2013), Magnusson & Werner (2022) and Mäkitie et al.
(2019) are all building or presenting a theoretical foundation based on existing literature, before
acquiring raw data through semi-structural interview with stakeholders as data collection
method. They are all using a qualitative method to explore the research problem.
32
The inductive methodology is used to draw conclusions based on raw data collection on the
research problem. This method employs with qualitative approaches to create an understanding
of a problem or phenomena by exploring a population in order to generalize the findings to
develop a theory or conclude on the problem or phenomena (Bryman, 2012, pp. 23–24).

Inductive methods with qualitative data for explorative research problems is commonly used
in business research (Bell et al., 2018, pp. 22–24). Presenting paper will therefore have an
overall inductive methodology and follows explorative research design with semi-structured
interviews as main data collection method. Since many of the literatures for similar problem
have used similar methodologies, this method will therefore be preferable as it is proven by
scholars.

Although it is important to clarify that this study was explorative research, which seek to
explore a problem thorough interview with industry experts, a literature review was also
conducted to understand state of the art of the problem, and to guide questioning and
interpretation of the interview data. It is also important to highlight that since this paper also
drawing on existing literature to study the research question and guide data collection and
analysis, the research is characterized by a mixed method of inductive and deductive
methodology. However the overall approach is inductive methodology where collected data
will be used to draw conclusions. The figure below show the overall research design for this
thesis.

33
Figure 5: The figure illustrates the overall work process for this thesis. It
shows the research design for presenting research.

34
4.3 Data collection
Data collection can be defined as methods to gather information that can be organized into
valuable data to be studied, interpreted and disseminated as knowledge (Frankfort-Nachmias
et al., 2015, p. 167). The data collection methods can be categorized into two different groups
based on their nature: primary and secondary data (Dudovskiy, n.d.).

This research paper have collected primary data. The primary data is directly collected from
the sources where the research problem was investigated (Bell et al., 2018, p. 12). As
mentioned earlier in, this research follows a qualitative data collection method and have
employed personal semi-structured interviews as primary collection method (Frankfort-
Nachmias et al., 2015, pp. 170–171).

4.3.1 Themes and concepts for data collection

The interview guide was designed to explore key theme and to identify important concepts and
information that can be valuable for the research. The guide is structured in 5 sections
consisting of introductory questions, 3 sections on the 3 different main themes and concluding
questions, totally 13 questions. However the interview was designed to be semi-structured and
therefore was the questions open-ended, in order to allow the participants to talk, explain and
express their meanings and thoughts as they wanted. This design allows to collect rich raw data
from the experts. The interview guides are presented in Appendix 1. The literature review
helped to form interview questions and at the same time the identified potential key themes
from literature review was also incorporated into the interview guide in order to assess them.
Explored themes through literature and interviews:

The literature review covered following themes:

- Norwegian OSV segment and its current trends.

- Offshore wind industry and its trends.
- Drivers for transition.
- Barriers for transition.
- Success factors for transition

35
The interview question covered the key themes:

- Drivers for Offshore service vessel companies in transitioning towards the offshore wind
market.
- Barriers for Norwegian Offshore service vessel companies in transitioning towards the
offshore wind market.
- Success factors that determine the success of transition for Norwegian Offshore service
vessel companies that serves offshore wind market.

4.3.2 Literature review method

The literature review can provide reliable data from credible sources such as recently published
studies. Data from literature review is reproducible and therefore easy to be tested and validated
by other researchers. Reviewing previous studies gave better understanding the current state of
the topic and provided a framework for this studies data collection, analysis and interpretation.

4.3.2.1 Goals for the literature review

The literature review for this paper have several objectives. Firstly, it aims to examine whether
previous studies can help answer the research questions of presenting master thesis. Secondly,
it provide rigorous academic support for the main topics to be investigated. In doing so, the
literature review can explore in-depth and detail to verify the relevance of the presented
research problem and contribute to critically examine subjective assumption that are made in
the introduction part. Thirdly the review help to form and guide the question for interview
questions and thereby helps to create a framework for data collection and the research
interpretation. For example, to assess the barriers origin according the multi model perspective.

Fourthly, a comprehensive literature review can also contribute to identify ideas that can be
used to solve the research problems, such as keywords to search for, themes to use, other data-
collections and processing methods, and integration of data from other research fields. Lastly
the literature review can help to identify previous used methods by other researchers to solve
similar problems. Identifying solid methods will ultimately lead to more precise data
collections and thereby enhance the validity of the research findings.

36
4.3.2.2 The literature search strategy
The literature presenting in this study is sourced from online databases, including Scopus,
Science direct, Semantic Scholar and Oria. The search engine Google Scholar was also used
as for articles and reports. Additional reports and publication were obtained from independent
organizations such as the Norwegian Shipowner's Association, Norsk industry, DNV, Clarkson
Intelligent, and official webpage of the Norwegian government.

The literature search was divided in three phases in order to gain overview and gather
knowledge about the relevant topic. The first literature search phase began with keywords such
as “transition”, “transition management”, “sustainability transition”, “energy transition” and
“business transition”. This phase helped to gather fundamental knowledge and understanding
of transition in business context.

The second literature search phase was more defined because the first phase gave insight into
the transition management topic and ideas for keywords. This process was characterized by
combining keywords used in first phase with new keyword related to industries that are similar
to OSV and relevant industrial area such as “onshore wind”, “offshore wind”, “renewable
industries”, “Norwegian offshore service vessel companies”, “oil and gas industry”, and
“offshore wind industry,". The operators AND” and OR helped to merge together the different
keywords in the search boxes in different databases.

The last article search phase was done to find literatures that can be used investigate the main
themes of the research question. The new keywords added to the search boxes in this phase
was “drivers”, “opportunities”, “challenges”, “barriers”, “obstacle”, “success factors” and
“success factors”. These keywords combined with the keywords mentioned in the two previous
phases led to more accurate search result to identify the main components of the research
question.

Other criterion used to aim for accurate search results was published year, type of literature,
research domain and language. The publication year was set to 2000-2023 for first search
phase, 2010-2023 for second- and third search phase. Type of literature was limited to
“Research articles”, “Book” and “Book chapter”. Research domain was set to “Business,
Management and Accounting”, “Social science” and “Energy”. Lastly the language was only
English.

37
The chosen articles have been chosen by straining through an organized search process with
criteria that helped to increase search accuracy and relevance of literature that will be used to
give a theoretical understanding of transition and to investigate the research problem.

4.3.3 Primary data collection

A semi-structural interview have been used to achieve many main objectives. Firstly will a
semi-structured interview guide the conversation in the desired direction, which is to identify
the main themes for the research questions. Secondly it will allow the participants to contribute
with their knowledge and to express their expertise through elaboration. Thirdly a semi-
structured interview allows to identify new concepts, ideas and key information to be expressed
as the research question it exploratory and are not studying a fixed theory or hypothesis.
Follow-up question will help to access more valuable information about a topic when needed.
Semi-structured interview gives direction and at the same time agility to explore problems and
key information that have not been identified yet (Bell et al., 2018, pp. 436–438).

The first interview was carried out in telephone and voice-recorded in private computer
because the participant preferred a phone call. This interview was also carried out in English
but remained 4 interviews with 5 participants (2 participants from one company) was carried
out in Microsoft Teams in Norwegian with simultaneously recording and transcribing function.
The research for changing languages is that all of the participants was Norwegian, and by
interacting in their mother tongue encouraged them to voice their thoughts. The transcript was
lately translated from the machine translation service DeepL. The AI have provided translation
service with high accuracy.

The data was collected from a population of 6 participants, who was employees from 5 different
Norwegian firms. As mentioned earlier 5 of them where from OSV firms while 1 was from
Norwegian Shipowner Association. The participant from NSA was working with a dedicated
department for Offshore wind. These individuals are all currently working in their respective
firms and have contributed with relevant information that can be organized and synthesized to
study the research questions. The informants’ names are disclosed, and they are called as
“Participants 1-,2-,3” and so on. This is shown in the figure below.

38
4.4 Ethical considerations
The research ethics is important to maintain in any research in order to secure a good and
responsible research. This research project is following research norms and guidelines I order
to maintain good scientific practice, responsible and protective relations to individuals and
organizations that are involved in this research and to maintain an overall social responsibility.
Data that have been collected, reviewed and used have been referred to the respective authors
and owners. As a student researcher I have been careful to give the credit to the right owner as
it is highly valued research norm for me.

The research project, data management and handling of anonymity and confidentiality
measures for this research is viewed and controlled by the Norwegian Agency for Shared
Services in Education and Research. Such an approval from an independent organization like
this contributes to secure the quality and responsibilities of this research project.

The informants that have been participated in the research project have been informed about
the objective of the study and their role and rights to withdraw at any time without providing
reason. The interview was only conducted with consent and the participants was informed
about my responsibility to keep the data confidential and the participants anonym. This was
provided through a confidentiality and non-disclosure statement which was prepared by the
University of South-Eastern Norway. Every interaction including provided information was
given written through e-mails to the participants.

Figure 6:The figure below gives and overview of the number of participated company,
participants their positions and experience in the company.

39
4.5 Data analysis
The research problem present a need for identifying patterns, themes, and concepts in the vast
qualitative and unstructured data. This need has led to grounded-theory analysis method is used
to discover new concepts and findings within the raw qualitative data (Bell et al., 2018, pp.
518–521. Grounded-theory data analysis method is suitable for an exploratory research
problem like this thesis present. A thematic coding strategy was also implemented in order to
identify already fixed themes (codes) based on research problem and literature review (Kiger
& Varpio, 2020, pp. 846–847).

Thematic coding was conducted based on the initial themes that was identified in literature
review for the key concepts of the research problem. At the same time In Vivo coding technique
was also used in order to identify new concepts. The In Vivo coding allows to extract themes
from the raw data (Kiger & Varpio, 2020; Manning, 2017; Thematic Analysis - an Overview,
n.d.).

Figure 7: The figure illustrates the methods and techniques that was used in the data analysis process.

Such an analysis process of qualitative is time-consuming and present limitations such as

subjective interpretation that in consequently might corrupt the developing concepts to be
inaccurate (Kiger & Varpio, 2020, p. 850). Despite that, there are compelling technique and
instruments to minimize these constrains. The collected data was analyzed with the help of
Nvivo to reduce the time-consuming process of organizing and analyzing data. Also the IN
vivo coding technique helped extract themes based on the interview participants words, which
reduces subjective interpretation from me. The already identified themes from research
question and literature review was organized and provided a framework for what to include
and exclude for data extraction process.

40
4.5.1 Presentation of coding
The thematic coding started with the key themes, drivers-, barriers-, and success factors for
transition. These key themes gave a framework and help to strain the data as first layer themes.
The second layer for themes was initially taken from the findings in literature review which
is presented in figure 4. Thereafter the in vivo analysis strategy allowed to identify new themes
that was added in this layer. The third layer of themes consist of sub-themes that was
identified through analysis of raw data, which also presents different aspects of second layer
themes.. The figure below shows the coded data and its character in picture.

Figure 8: The figure visualize the code structure, orange is

drivers, blue is barrier and grey is the success factors

Drivers have 3 themes and 3 sub-theme, while barriers have 4 themes and 4 sub-themes.
Success factors have 7 themes and 1 sub-theme. Figure below gives numeric presentation of
the data after coding process. The Result chapter will present the data that have been extracted
from the thematic coding. The objective of this chapter is to assess the relevance, importance
and function of the identified transition factors through literature, and to identify new findings
that can help answer the research question.

41
5. Analysis and Results
This chapter presents the results of analyzing data from interviews with industry experts. The
analysis is based on the research question, which focuses on identifying drivers, barriers, and
success factors for Norwegian offshore service firms transitioning from oil and gas to the
offshore wind industry. To organize and present the findings, a thematic approach is used based
on the themes that emerged from the data analysis process. This approach highlights the most
important and relevant information and makes it easy to follow the key findings. Firstly, the
analysis of the main themes (layer 2) that emerged from the literature review will be presented,
followed by the new themes that emerged from the thematic analysis process. The results in
presented in following order:

Transition factors Main themes

1. Transition Drivers
2. Transition Barriers
3. Transition success factors
Table 1: Overview of the themes and the chronological order they will be presented in, in this chapter.
1. Political drivers
2. Economical drivers
3. Transferable competence
4. Technical barriers
5. Economical barriers
6. Oil and gas barriers
7. Political barriers
8. Clear and narrative vision
9. Collaboration
10. Business model
11. Innovation
12. Communication
13. Political support

42
5.1 Transition drivers
This section will present the result of data analysis on drivers for Norwegian OSV firms’
transition. The theme that was identified in literature that also was found in the raw data is
political driver, while economical drivers and competence drivers emerged from the coding
process.

5.1.1 Green investment as political driver

The political drivers was further coded as “Green investment” because participants from three-
fifths of the firms anticipated political drivers with “green investment”. The sub-themes “Green
investment” emerged as a pattern in the raw data for question that was asked for providing
political drivers. The coded data shows 7 verbal references (number of citation from the
participants in the coded data) from 3 out of 6 participants.

When participant 2 was asked: “Are there any other such political factors that influence, that
act as a driving force?” Participant 2 answer this:

“Hmmm. The regulation in a way on. Green and brown and black sort of areas in terms of sort of
funding so that. It is flagged that it should be cheaper to finance projects against green projects that
are then defined as offshore wind projects.”

While Participant 3 provided the following response when asked about political drivers:

“Hmmm that bank one thing with the banks they were more of loans for a green, i.e. new build
today. Would clearly be easier to finance towards offshore wind.”

The last person who connected political factor with green investment is participant 4. During the
interview, Participant 4's colleague (Participant 5) exhibited nonverbal cues indicating
agreement with the statement. Specifically, their body language suggested agreement, as
evidenced by nodding the head. This observation provides additional support for the idea that
the OSV firms that participated connect green investment as a political driver toward
sustainable transition.

The answer from participant 4 was:

“Today, if you're building a ship today, you have to make some green choices, and we all are. I really
think that we are, and all our competitors are. Nobody wants to pollute.”

43
The analysis found that "Green investment" emerged as a sub-theme in the raw data when
participants were asked about political drivers for a transition from oil and gas to offshore wind.
Three out of six participants mentioned green investment as a political driver, with seven verbal
references in the coded data. Green investment is driven by political factors such as regulations
and loan policies for green projects, as mentioned by Participants 2 and 3. These findings
suggest that OSV firms connect green investment as a political driver for transitioning to a
sustainable industry and practices.

5.1.2. Economic drivers

The analysis of the data reveals that economic drivers are one of the motivating factors for
Norwegian OSV firms to enter the offshore wind industry. These findings indicate economic
benefits of offshore wind may be an important consideration for firms seeking to operations in
offshore wind. The economic drivers were further identified into 2 sub-themes, namely
growing market opportunity and risk spreading. The figure 10 illustrates the weight of the
different sub-themes under Economic drivers based on the number of references

Figure 9: Chart of the Economic driver (the dark blue circle) and its sub-themes (light blue).

44
The growing market opportunity
According to data analysis the sub-theme, growing market opportunity, was mentioned as a
driver by 4 of the 6 participants. This sub-themes had 60% of the total references for Economic
drivers.

One of the starting questions to the participants was related to their firm’s motivation for
entering offshore wind. For example when participant 2 gave and detailed answer to explain
about their motivation for entering offshore wind industry. The question was formulated this
way: “OK, so I have one question. What are your interests in offshore wind, what is the
motivation for you to go into offshore wind?”

The answer from participant 2 clearly outlines market growth as their main economic driver
and additionally pointing out that renewable industries will dominate the energy sectors in the
future. Participant 2 expressed it this way:

“Yes, the motivation for going into offshore wind, you can say that first, is that it's a growing
market. It's an industry that is more kind of future-oriented with renewable energy, and that
we think is important.

So we work a lot in oil and gas, but it's an industry that will be phased out eventually, and then
to kind of be in a more renewable part of the industry is a big motivation for us.”

While participant 3 was explaining the main reason for the firm to entered the offshore wind
industry and further talked about the future motivation to strengthen their position in the
industry. The answer that explain their motivation for entering Offshore wind was:

“It's a cyclical industry, but big downturn in 2014. Hmmm. And at the same time, the wind
grew up in Europe, Germany, Denmark and eventually England now, so we actually saw it as
an alternative market. So we could get some contracts on wind.

And so we are very interested and curious about what floating offshore wind can give of
opportunities. Here we suddenly have 2 markets competing with each other. This means that
our boats become double attractive.”

While answer of participant 5 had different perspective, where the oil crisis was outlined as not
the underlying reason for seeking new market opportunities, rather expresses that the
motivation came naturally entry with the market growth:

45
“It came as a kind of natural idea. It wasn't like when the crisis came in 2014, so. Vessel A, we
agreed to put all our efforts into offshore wind came only as a natural.

What we, we are open to all markets and when the need arose, we had a boat available and
ready.”

Participant 4 from the same company agreed the colleague:

“So that's what participant 5 said. We kind of move the boats to where it is needed.”

Moreover, Participant 6 who represent an association for shipping firms and working to
facilitate the offshore wind opportunities is expressing the current and future growth of the
offshore wind industry by saying:

“And up until now, the turnover related to offshore wind has gone up to about 8.7 billion? Yes,
there has been such a gradual upward trend for the members of the drift band. And you see the
opportunities when you look internationally at different countries that are going to build
offshore wind farms, both fixed and floating. And right there, wherever a wind farm is to be
built, there is a potential for.”

The analysis of the sub-themes discloses the potential for growth in the offshore wind industry
and the importance for the future. The motivation for entering the offshore wind industry was
largely driven by market growth. Analysis of the data shows that many participants also
highlighted the potential of floating offshore wind farms as a new market opportunity. The
turnover related to offshore wind has been increasing gradually, and the international market
for offshore wind farms presents a potential for growth in the future.

Risk spreading as a transition driver

Risk spreading as a driver is closely linked to the growing market opportunities, which are
not clearly distinguished by the participants in their explanations. However the analysis shows
to different aspect of the economical driver for a transition towards offshore wind industry.
interview analysis reveal that 4 out of 6 participants where in different way expressing risk
spreading as a main factor for entering offshore wind industry.

According to participant 1, the management and board made a strategic decision to build their
business in both the traditional oil and gas and new renewable industries, including offshore
wind. Participant 1 said that “the strategic decision by senior management and the board of

46
the company resulted in this this new business strategy for the company. So, we have a solid
leg in the traditional business of seismic and we are now building another leg within the energy
transition aspect.”

On the other hand, participant 3 answer that was presented in the growing market opportunity
section shows the link between these two drivers. Market downturn in oil and gas made the
firm enter int offshore wind, where it was possible to generate revenue.

The answer from participant 3 was as follows:

“It's a cyclical industry, but big downturn in 2014. Hmmm. And at the same time, the wind
grew up in Europe, so Germany, Denmark and eventually England now, so we actually saw it
as an alternative market. So we could get some contracts on wind.”

The response from Participant 3 demonstrates that numerous companies are leveraging
offshore wind as a subsidiary or alternative source for spreading risk. The participant also
explain the strategies some companies applies to spread for maintaining revenue and cashflow.

Participant 3 explained it this way:

“Sorry, in addition to running offshore service to the oil, they also have a kind of sub, right?
Many shipping companies are organized so that we have a parent company in a way, and then
they have a lot of sub-companies underneath that do different things, and not true instead of
restructuring the whole thing.”

Similarly, participant 5 statement showed that the company is open to all markets and had a
boat available and ready when the need arose, indicating a willingness to spread risk across
multiple industries. At the same time participant 4 told that the company decided to acquire
ships that can be used for both oil and gas and renewables, further indicating a focus on risk
spreading.

The statement from participant 5: “What we, we are open to all markets and when the need
arose, we had a boat available and ready.”

Participant 4: “No and yes, and we don't have that now either. We have a strategy meeting with
us last summer, where it was said that we will try to acquire boats that can be used for both
Oil and gas and renewables.”
47
The data from participant showed that risk spreading played an important role in their firms
transitioning to the offshore wind industry. both of the presented Economical drivers was
hardly distinguishing by the participants as the observations showed. Overall, the coded data
reveals that participant’s firms were motivated to enter the offshore wind industry in part due
to the potential for risk spreading across multiple industries.

5.1.3 Transferable competence

The theme Transferable competence as a driver emerged from the discussions with the
participants representing the 4 OSV firms. They have claimed competence that is in the
possession of the firm is a reason for entering the OSV industry. However, the participant
representing the Association did not talk about competence for transition driver. The analysis
outlines the competence is participants’ company in traditional offshore business can be
transferable to offshore wind. Competence was discussed as a factor by 4 of the participants,
and they referred transferable competence as a driver.

When participant 1 was asked to tell about the firms involvement in offshore wind, the
answer was:

“But again the method you use for getting knowledge about the subsurface is much the same.
We need to do some adjustments on the service setup and how we use our equipment and also
how we process the data but on the average, it's pretty much the same business.”

Transferable competence is according to participant 1 the current skills, knowledge and other
capabilities of Norwegian OSV firms from traditional oil and gas industry can be used to
capitalize the offshore wind industry as well.

Participant 2 answer did confirm the information from participant 1. The person was stating
that their current competence makes them compatible to operate in offshore wind as well and
also highlighting that Norwegian OSV firms are highly competent to operate in Offshore wind
industry:

“Hmmm and then the service that we provide to the offshore wind industry is very compatible
with what we do today. We kind of become the people who operate a boat safely and securely,
and that's the main job, we're not doing the maintenance on the mill, not on the installations
on the logs, but we provide a service that ... will kind of create and deliver a safe and secure
platform for our customers.”

48
“Yes, absolutely. So we are all. The offshore shipping companies in a way is highly competent
and operate in that business here.”

Participant 4 and 5 answer regarding the role competence plays for their involvement in
offshore wind showed that most of the competence the firm has is transferable to offshore wind.
Also, similarly to participant 2, these two also confirms that Norwegian OSV firms are highly
competent to operate in Offshore wind.

Both participants were engaged in the conversation, with participants 4 was stating:

“We have it very much, so with it there is very much that is transferable.”

Participant 5 furthered this point by stating:

“Generally speaking, I think we can say that the expertise that offshore shipping companies in
Norway have built up over many years in oil and gas is basically slides right into offshore
wind. And… yes all of us p well equipped to go in there.”

Another participant is providing an interesting information by stating that the floating offshore
wind market will be constrained by high technological barriers which probably can only be
served by Norwegian offshore shipping companies.

Participant 3 expressed it through this statement:

“And that's my point, that on floating wind, the technology level is so high, the barrier is so
high, that it's probably only that will be able to be providers.”

The participants representing four Norwegian OSV firms discussed the theme of transferable
competence as a driver for entering the offshore wind industry. They claimed that the current
skills, knowledge, and capabilities possessed by their firms from the traditional offshore
business can be transferred to the offshore wind industry. The analysis showed that competence
was a factor discussed by most participants and that Norwegian OSV firms are highly
competent to operate in the offshore wind industry. One participant outlined that the high
technological barriers in the floating offshore wind market can probably let only Norwegian
OSV firms to serve this niche.

49
5.2 Transition barriers
Transition barriers from literatures such as short-term profitability and high investment cost
have been coded as a sub-themes for economic barriers in thematic coding process. While lack
of knowledge and skills was not mentioned as a barrier by the participants, rather they focused
on technical barriers. The figure below illustrates the different themes and the corresponding
sub-themes.

Figure 10: The chart is showing 5 themes (brown) with their corresponding sub-themes (light brown) which is
identified as transition barriers for Norwegian OSV firms transition to offshore wind.

50
5.2.1 The O&G barriers
The data analysis shows that the firms face barriers in transitioning to offshore wind due to the
oil and gas industry's activities. This theme was disclosed when the participants were asked
what role Oil and gas industry played for their transition to offshore wind.

Participant 2 indicates that the earning potential in the oil and gas industry could shift the
balance away from offshore wind. And that some vessels are moving away from offshore wind
and into oil and gas. The participant expressed it in following viewpoint:

“I think maybe because of the oil and gas prices going up, maybe it will kind of shift the balance
from offshore wind a little bit more to oil and gas, so because of where it is it's driven by kind
of the earning potential.”

Participant 3 further support this claim by stating that the oil and gas industry has been paying
better than Offshore wind and have been the focus of the last couple of years for OSVs. The
participant mentioned that the Russian-Ukraine war has increased oil and gas activities in the
short term, with higher TC rates for the vessels. The statement of Participant 3 sounds like this:
“And after the Ukraine war, all the energy crisis is like that. So we have seen that oil and gas
pay best.”

“Yeah, it had almost been a little bit reverse last in the short term, so had almost reverse. Very
much focus on gas extraction, gas projects and drilling. Projects in the spot. It's typically the
spot markets commentators moving around these drilling rigs in the North Sea.”

“Then turn the focus or was it the other way around that in the last couple of years it has been
oil and gas that has been the most important and best paid.”

Finally, participant 6 states that the oil industry vacuums a lot of expertise from around the
country, which could limit the availability of engineering expertise for OWP firms. Overall,
these references suggest that the ongoing activities in the oil and gas industry present
significant barriers for Norwegian OSV firms in transitioning to OWP, as the traditional
industry is better paid. Participant 6 expresses it in such a manner:

“So the oil industry vacuums a lot of expertise from around the country, which is not available
to other companies. And not only do we have one, it applies to most of the people who need a
formula for engineering expertise and so on.”

51
In summary, the analysis indicates that the oil and gas industry's activities pose a significant
barrier for Norwegian OSV firms transitioning to offshore wind power. The participants noted
that the earning potential in the traditional industry is higher, leading some vessels to move
away from offshore wind and into oil and gas. Additionally, the focus on oil and gas extraction,
drilling, and projects in the spot market has been higher in recent years, limiting the transition
to the offshore wind industry. the next section will be an analysis of the economic barriers as a
themes.

5.2.2 Economic barriers

A pattern of different economical barriers was observed in the raw data from the interviews,
which later was coded in 4 sub-themes. The sub-themes are fiduciary duty (short-term
profit), high credit barriers, high investment cost and low TC rates and margins. Fiduciary
duty was defined as short-term profit in literature as the table below shows, the data for
fiduciary duty was extracted from the interviews with Participant 2, 3 and 4&5. According to
the table, Participant 2-, 3- and 4&5 was active and contributed with most data on economic
barriers.

Participant 1 Participant 2 Participant 3 Participants 4&5 Participant 6

The sub-themes
1: Fiduciary 0% 27,43% 21,53% 51,04% 0%

duty
2: High credit 0% 7,51% 56,76% 23,72% 12,01%

barriers
3: High 18,28% 18,66% 63,06% 0% 0%

investment cost
4: Low TC rates 0% 33,33% 41,83% 4,67% 20,17%
Table
and2: The table shows the contribution of each participants on the different economic barriers
margin

Fiduciary duty as barrier

Fiduciary duty is the action taken to secure the interest for the shareholders of a firm. Many
of the participants have discussed that their company will act according. Participant 2 indicates
that the long-term perspective required for a successful transition to offshore wind may conflict
with shareholders' need to generate income. This interview highlighted that firms might
prioritize short-term profits over long-term investments in transitioning to the offshore wind
industry. Participant 2 explained this during the question about how important it is to have a
business model that is appropriate for offshore wind industry:

52
“Yes, we have our first, so we have to generate some kind of income for our shareholders, so
to always have a sustainable business model is very important.

In that model, it must think about the long-term in relation to what you get in return. So a long
contract can in a way be part of the decision... Hmmm. The decision-making basis can be called
that in relation to thinking about a transition from oil and gas”

Similarly, Participant 3 explains that their firms prioritize maximizing profits and going where
the highest rate of return is, regardless of whether in the oil and gas industry or offshore wind.
This also reveals that the fiduciary duty to maximize profits may prevent firms from investing
in offshore wind if it is less profitable than the traditional oil and gas industry.

“But we are like everyone else, we want the highest possible return, so we go where the highest
rate is.”

“As I said, we go for the job with the highest return on investment.”

“We have a strategy to maximize our profit, and if oil and gas makes the most profit, then that's
where we go.”

Finally, Participant 4 pointed out that the board's focus on maximizing profits may cause
companies to prioritize industries with higher profit potential, such as oil and gas. The
participants also stated that companies have a duty to shareholders to operate as profitably as
possible, which may prevent investment in the offshore wind if it is not as profitable.

“Then the board's demand to those who will manage this here. That you manage to navigate
where there is the most money to be made.”

“There is no resistance like that, but it's just that you say that you.If you enter into a contract,
a 5-year contract in offshore wind that pays 1/4 of what you could get in oil and gas or vice
versa, then there will be a penalty on the stock exchange.”

“We have a duty to our shareholders to operate as profitably as possible.”

The analysis helped discover that fiduciary duty, which is the responsibility to secure the
interests of a firm's shareholders, plays a crucial role in firms' decision-making process
regarding investments in the offshore wind industry. The participants noted that the fiduciary
duty to maximize profits might cause firms to prioritize short-term profits over long-term
investments in transitioning to the offshore wind industry. The interview also highlighted that
53
companies have a duty to operate as profitably as possible, which may prevent investment in
offshore wind if it is less profitable than traditional industries like oil and gas.

Low TC rates- and margins

The interview with the participants helped discover a contrary finding to literature review,
which indicated TC rates as an opportunity. According to data analysis 5 of the participants aid
current TC rates and margin in Offshore wind is comparatively to oil and gas very lower. And
therefore making this theme a barrier for many of participants’ firms to increase their
involvement in this industry.

Participant 2 highlights that traditionally low margins in the offshore wind market and explains
that they face challenges finding good business models and funding due to the low TC rates.

This is expressed in this way:

“What I think is that offshore wind has traditionally been a subsidized market, so that means
that the margins in that market have been very low. It's still relatively low margins. It's mainly
that it's low rate, so it's difficult to find funding and find business models that are good enough
to make an investment.”

Participant 3 discusses the low TC rates in the bottom-fixed offshore wind market and refers
to the high costs focus because governments subsidize the projects in German and Denmark.
According to this informant a long-term contract in OWP can secure some earning for the
vessel, but the rates are considerably low. Further explains that their firm have decided to not
make major investments in vessels for bottom-fixed OWP segment.

Participant 3 statement about low TC rates and low margins:

“Yes, and the rates were very low. Bottom fixed wind is in Denmark and Germany very
subsidized,. so huge focus on the costs.”

“Hmmm then you typically get one of those ten-year long contracts at very low so the only
thing you know when you win one of those.

Where the whole industry we were cities is that you earn the least.

54
So it's a paradox, but you secure work for that ship for a long time for a new build. Hmmm. So
we have actually made a decision to not focus on newbuilds and major conversions on bottom
fixed. We will take these projects if it suits us.”

Participants 4 and 6 confirmed the statements the two participants presented, by saying:
“Until now, you could say that it is TC rates in offshore wind have been low.”- Participant 4

“When you have a good supply of projects, we also do it in a way that you can scale up. But
that's again one of the big challenges in the offshore wind market is the need to scale up in
order to be able to create in a way to get a little bit more mass production and thus have better
earnings on it because it is.”

“The second biggest problem is costs and slash lack of earnings that it is the margins are too
low simply the biggest or the biggest challenge”- Participant 6

The interviews with the participants highlighted the challenges firms face in the offshore wind
industry due to low TC rates and traditionally low margins. This finding contradicts the
literature review, which identified TC rates as an opportunity. Participant 2 emphasized the
difficulties in finding good business models and funding, while Participant 3 discussed the
focus on cost and low TC rates in the bottom-fixed offshore wind market. Participants 4 and 6
confirmed the low TC rates in the industry and identified scaling up as a challenge for firms to
increase their involvement.
High investment cost barrier
The Norwegian offshore service vessel (OSV) industry faces a high investment barrier,
hindering firms from transitioning to new projects. The analysis of three participants'
comments reveals the challenges of investing in equipment and vessels. At the same time the
data analysis disclose a significant obstacle for OSV firms investment in new assets: high credit
barrier from banks. This will be analyzed in next section sub-theme.

Participant 1 emphasizes the uncertainty and risk of investing in equipment and vessels for
geotechnical operations, which would require a significant financial investment. According to
this informant the major uncertainty is the return on the investment. This information was
disclosed when the participant said:

55
“If we decided to do that, we had to invest in equipment. We most likely also had to invest in
vessels. For geotechnical operation, which would entail a significant investment for us, which
we also would have been uncertain about how much return we would get from that investment.”

Similarly, Participant 2 highlights the additional costs associated with meeting Flag State
requirements, which increases the overall investment barrier:

“Flag State requirements for the vessel base you haven't addressed that, but and that again
goes back to the investment cost if you if you have to build a boat that covers all possible Flag
State requirements, then you get a higher cost and thus a bigger ... Hmmm investment
barriers.”

Participant 3 outlines the challenges of transitioning to floating wind projects, which would
require investment in new ships, and long-term contracts to be commercially viable for them.
Further, the person highlights challenges associated with investing in new custom-built vessels
after the end of OWP project, which will lead to limited resale value of these vessel.
Additionally, Participant 3 does also discussed the role of banks in financing new construction
projects, highlighting the banks' risk aversion, which makes it challenging for shipowners to
invest in new assets.

This is how the participant expressed it:

“On floating wind. It will as seen started for 26 twenty-seven 28 there will be very many needs,
so then it will take 3 years both from or 2 and a half years, so we really have to say commercial
contract maybe next year.”

“But as I said we have made a little distinction where we have stopped a little bit. We do not
want to make more investments in anchored vessels. There it will be more like project on
project with existing tonnage.”

“And if a boat is too custom built for that contract, then after 10 years it is unsellable for the
next project. But there are very few who will realize it because they can't finance the new
building.”

56
“But no new construction, and that's mainly because of the banks are holding back. So the
banks have become risk averse. So it's only when they get a long contract example times, then
you can go to the bank and ask if you can borrow money.”

In summary, the Norwegian offshore service vessel industry faces a high investment barrier
that hinders firms' involvement in new offshore wind projects. The analysis reveals significant
obstacles to investing in equipment and vessels, meeting Flag State requirements, and
transitioning to floating wind projects. Moreover, banks' risk aversion and the importance of
securing long-term contracts as a prerequisite for obtaining loans also hinder investment in new
assets. The following section will further analyze the risk aversion of the banks.
High credit barrier
The Norwegian OSV industry is encountering difficulties in moving towards the offshore wind
sector because of the reluctance of banks to provide loans, leading to considerable credit
barriers. A thorough data analysis has exposed an evident pattern of banks becoming more risk-
averse, which has emerged as a notable new theme.

Firstly, the participant 2 stated that “it’s difficult to find funding and find business models that
are good enough to make an investment”. Which indicated that finding fundings for making
investment in the new business area was challenging for their company.

As Table 2 shows, Participant 3 had most input on this sub-theme and further explained that
the banks have become risk-averse after many of banks who invested in OSV industries have
lost money. Participant 3 argues that the lack of new construction is mainly due to the banks
holding back. This could mean that the banks are less willing to take on loans for new projects,
including OSV firms seeking funding for expansion or new vessels.

The informant outlines it in this way:

“But no new construction, and that's mainly because of the banks are holding back. So the
banks have become risk averse.”

“The disadvantages again are that the banks will say show us the contract on time at least,
and not everyone is able to do that today. It's a bit like that, but it starts with the banks.”

“But there are very few who will realize it because they can't finance the new building.”

57
The same barrier have been identified by Participant 4 as well. In the interview, according to
the informant it is challenging to fund a vessel for oil and gas project. This was outlined in such
way:

“Then it is still difficult getting funding for oil and gas.”

“Yes, so that. It depends a little bit on the banks and at the same time that there was no
infrastructure or solution on fuel and stuff and today.”

At the same time, Participant 3 and 4 explain that banks may be more willing to provide loans
for green energy projects. This suggests that OSV firms operating in offshore wind sector may
have better access to funding than those in the traditional oil and gas industry. Although the
contract have to be of significant value in order to get loan form the banks.

Participant 3 and 4 explains it in this way:

“Yes, and you have to. Today, if you're building a ship today, you have to make some green
choices (…).”

“Hmmm that bank one thing with the banks they were more of loans for a green, i.e. new build
today. Would clearly be easier to finance towards offshore wind.”

. “So it's only when they get a long contract example times, then you can go to the bank and
ask if you can borrow money.”

In summary, the Norwegian OSV industry faces credit barriers as banks become more risk-
averse and reluctant to provide loans for offshore shipping firms' new projects. The informants
highlighted the challenges of obtaining funding for new construction and expansion, with
banks requiring contracts and showing a preference for green energy projects. The findings
suggest that the OSV firms operating in the offshore wind sector may have better access to
funding than those in the traditional oil and gas industry.

58
5.2.3 The technical barrier
The theme of technical barriers was raised by a most participants, with a degree of consensus
on certain issues but some divergent perspectives on others. One particular barrier identified
by many participants that operate in both the oil and gas and offshore wind energy sectors is
the lack of adequate solutions for vessels, and offshore wind turbines and farms.

Specifically, participants highlighted the difficulty of finding adequate solutions with such as
walk-to-work bridges, which enable the safe and efficient transport of personnel and equipment
to and from wind farms. Participant 3 noted that hiring a walkway from a third party presented
an expense, and at the same time it have to be assembled and reassembled for each wind project
the vessel in involved in. This was reflected in the following statement from participant 3:

“We need to hire a walkway from a third party for the projects. So there might be the biggest
barrier we have then, so when we offer tonnage and ship, it's day rates for ship plus rate for
walkway.

Those who win a ten-year contract on a sleep or one. They have a permanent hallway with
installed finance will work on it in time. But a boat that is going to serve oil and gas and wind
has to go on and off with this equipment.”

Another problems that is disclosed is that the current vessel dimensions of many Norwegian
SOV might not be suitable for floating offshore wind projects. As participant 3 put it:

“And we also see that they are for example an SOV of 85 meters, which is typical for a bottom
fixed. For example Doggerbank or you can go on any SOV, the one to company X or to yeah
Company Y and they are typically between 80 and 90 meters, and they don't have the
opportunity. Don't have a chance to work on a floating field.”

Participant 4 statement supports and further explain the technical challenges with offshore wind
turbines:

“You, you're going up to these turbines, and they're getting bigger and bigger, and it's getting
higher and higher, so you have to have bigger and bigger vessels, and you have to reach higher
and higher to help you. One thing is that the ships that were relevant 5 years ago may not be
relevant anymore if they simply can't reach up.”

59
Participant 6 on the other hand is having a different perspective and discuss the lack of technical
competence within engineering field. According to the participant the firms lacks competence
with digital transformation and ICT. The person put it in this way:

“Yes, but not true, that we have not. We have not used any figures specifically on the offshore
wind industry, but we have it on the shipping companies, in our economic report, and it is
particularly ICT competence digitalization that.”

Overall, the participants in the study highlighted technical barriers as a major challenge for
them. One significant challenge faced by firms operating in both oil and gas and offshore wind
energy sectors is the lack of adequate solutions for vessels, offshore wind turbines and farms.
Walk-to-work bridges were mentioned as a specific problem due to the expense and need for
assembly and disassembly for each project. The size of vessels was also identified as a problem
for floating offshore wind projects. Additionally, participants noted the need for bigger and
higher-reaching vessels to reach increasingly large offshore wind turbines. Some participants
also mentioned a lack of technical competence, specifically in digital transformation and ICT,
within the engineering field.

5.2.4 Lack of political support

The last themes that emerged from data analysis is lack of political support. According to the
analysis 5 participants have mentioned political factors as barrier for their transition towards
offshore wind. Lack of political support is presents different aspects of the political
insufficiency that hamper the involvement of the Norwegian OSV firms in offshore wind.
Participant 2 and 3 talked about the constrains regulatory, especially tax related they faces
when their fleet have to operate within other states territorial seawater (12 nautical mile zone).

The participant 2 explained it in this said:

“No, no, it's more it's not specific to offshore wind. It's more flag state requirements in terms
of the different flags operating slightly differently. Hmmm so it's more general for shipping,
there's still the same barrier for and then there's the fact that offshore wind operates both inside
and outside 12-mile zones.”

Participant 3 said:
“There are probably some exceptions and deviations you can apply for, but that's not
something we focus on and the 12 mile limit, right, yes, for us it's more people to tax the
employees then.
60
If we go into 12 miles and in particular England, there is a lot of tax liability that occurs for
seafarers.”

Participant 4 and 5 on the other hand was focus the lack of regulatory framework, precisely for
fuel requirements and funding systems for OSV firms. The data reveal that the systems for
governmental funding of innovation projects by OSV firms lacks standardized and stable
frameworks the actors can relay on. The political uncertainty and lack of support for
development is a major barrier according to the informants. They do also refer to other the
Dutch Governments who provides more support for Dutch OSV firms in offshore wind
projects, and outlines that this is missing Norwegian political regulations:

“There are many. There are a number of options on the table today, but another problem. That
is that there is no regulatory framework for those options. First of all, there is no perfect
solution for those options.”

“Exactly how they get support there are different ways they get support like that.

Like our own project we were involved in, we used one of these, for example biodiesel, so that
it should be almost carbon neutral, about to say. And it's a diesel that costs about twice the of
regular marine diesel. But there was the Dutch government involved, and certainly demanded
to support it.”

The lack of political support for the Norwegian OSV industry is a major obstacle in the sector's
transition towards offshore wind. Regulatory constraints, tax liabilities, and the absence of
standardized and stable frameworks for governmental funding of innovation projects are
identified as the primary political barriers. The informants also noted that the Dutch
government provides more support for Dutch OSV firms in offshore wind projects.

61
5.3 Success factor for transition
Success factors for transition to offshore wind industry was examined through the interview.
The data analysis led to 8 success factors, where pattern of 2 new themes was identified. The
data analysis of success factor helps to assess their validity and relevance for Norwegian OSV
firms transition from oil and gas industry to offshore wind industry.

5.3.1 clear and narrative vision

First themes in transition success factors is clear ad narrative vision, which was identified in
literature a critical factor for facilitating transition. the collected from the participant reveals
the role of appropriate vision for transition. the data was extracted from 4 participants and 1 on
them are directly using the word vision and explains that it play an important role for their firm,
while 2 others are discussing it by refer to long-term strategy. One of the companies denied
that they have a specific sustainable vision.

Participant 2 explained how they are using vision to communicate with external words to show
that their company will stay in offshore win business for the long-term run. Having a
sustainable oriented vision is important for the company to build customer base and
communicate that they will be a stable partner in the offshore wind industry. When asked what
role vision plays for their offshore wind business, the person answer:

“Yes, I think it is. I think that's important to have.

It's quite important because you have to show that you're going to be there for the long term
and not a short-term player, so you have to show that if you go in there, it's to be there for the
long term. So that customers have a solid partner to relate to.”

Participant 1 and 4 on the other hand is referring to their strategies regarding the company’s
vision and transition to offshore. According to participant 1 their company is in the process of
exploring the sustainable business areas and tells that their company have made strategic
decision for taking part in the transition and looking for new sustainable offshore industry.

Participant 1 explains it here:

“Yeah. Well, it's the energy transition which kind of started to evolve back in… Yeah, 2018 to

2020. And of course the, over the last couple of years have accelerated, so we had a process

internally to look into other areas where we could use our expertise and our assets to build a

62
business within the energy transition space and. Came up with our new energy business in

202x. Basically our strategic decision by senior management and the board of the company

which resulted in this this new business strategy for the company.”

When Participants 4 and 5 were asked if they have transition or sustainable oriented vision, the
answer was ambivalent where they are explaining that they don’t have a such a vision, however
at the same time they explains they have made strategic decision of acquiring ships that can be
used for oil and gas industry and renewable businesses. Participant 3 answer is on contrary to
everyone else, where their company do not have such a vision.

Participant 4 said:

“No and yes, and we don't have that now either. We have a strategy meeting last summer,
where it was said that we will try to acquire boats that can be used for both, oil and gas and
renewables.”

The data analysis indicated that having a clear vision plays a crucial role in building a stable
customer base and communicating a long-term commitment to the industry. While two
participants refer to their company's long-term strategy, two others have an ambivalent
response regarding having a sustainable vision but explain the strategic decisions their
companies have made to acquire ships for both oil and gas and renewable industries. One
participant reported that their company does not have a sustainable vision.

5.3.2 Capabilities as success factor

Furthermore the importance of skills, knowledge and competence was presented as capabilities
to the participants for assessing Norwegian OSV firms capabilities to capitalizing offshore
wind. The analysis indicated that all of the participants agreed that Norwegian OSV firms are
highly competent and will play an important role in the future offshore wind market because
of their capabilities.

Participant 1 was explained that their firm is capitalizing all of their internal resources in order
to success in the renewable business, including offshore wind. According to the informant the
firm have established R&D department, a new renewable business unit and recruiting external
experts from businesses such as offshore wind into the firms’ leading positions in order to
succeed with the transition.

63
Participant 1 explained it this way:

“So of course we have capitalized as much as we can on our internal expertise. And used some
external expertise when we have seen the need for it.”

“We have a R&D department in Company 1. They are also engaged in developing our New
energy business.

“Well, offshore wind has really been a core business in Norway historically, but I think yeah,
the skills and capabilities we have from the traditional oil and gas business is skills and
capabilities that we can also capitalize on within the offshore wind aspect and we see that
already involved in terms of what our peers are doing (…)”

Participant 2 highlighted that their firm and other Norwegian OSV firms have contributed with
increasing safety culture to offshore wind. While Participant 3 and 4 outlined that Norwegian
OSV firms especially have the capabilities to capitalize offshore wind because after all as they
are qualified to operate in the North Sea with rough conditions.

They expressed this way:

“Yes, absolutely. So we are all. The offshore shipping companies in a way highly competent
and operate in that business here.

We have a relatively young in a way industry and, and we have probably contributed to,
especially the Norwegian shipping companies and increase the safety culture on that or the
safety focus”- Participant 2

“We are the Norwegian offshore shipping companies are the most competent in the world on
complex offshore people and so on.

Yes, you can be approved to operate oil gas, so the spot market, oil, gas or subsea market in
the North Sea is the most demanding, in terms of compliance, regulations, technology DP.”-
Participant 3

“I think we are going to have an important role in the global offshore wind industry because
of the expertise and what we are doing.”- Participant 4

The data analysis presented the importance of capabilities for assessing Norwegian OSV firms'
capabilities to capitalize on offshore wind. All participants agreed that Norwegian OSV firms

64
are highly competent and will play a crucial role in the future offshore wind market due to their
capabilities.

5.3.3 Collaboration
Collaboration was one of initial themes that was discussed with the informants to validate its
importance for this specific niche. According to the data analysis, most participants connected
collaboration mostly with customer relationship and limited it to it.

Participant 1, 2 and 4 discussed costumer relationship when they were asked the role and
importance of collaboration. Participant 1 in mentioned that their company have continued to
build the relationships from oil and gas into offshore wind and other renewable energy
industries. While second participant focused on how they engaged with costumer and uses
constructive communications to build client network. Similarly, participant 4 is also explain
that they cooperate with the costumer to find solutions for long-term challenges they faces
together.

They puts it in this way:

“So yes, we also intend to capitalize on the relationship we have with the larger national energy
companies from our traditional business into the new energy business and that is something
that we have done in carbon storage. And also very often in offshore wind, we do see that our
core clients from the oil and gas are also the clients that we see in the offshore wind business.”-
Participant 1

“(…) but at least we have made it work very well in terms of having an open and constructive
dialog with the customers as someone who is new in this field, yes.

This said we kind of started with one customer or we showed that we could deliver and from
that you can build a bigger kind of a broader customer base.”- Participant 2

“Sitting down around the table with the customer, and then thinking out loud and trying to
plan, when it's such a long-time horizon.”- Participant 4

Another participant provide more information on collaborating and explained that they are
collaborating with other bigger niche players in order to get more access to offshore wind
projects. The participant said:

“And then we have a collaboration with Subsea 7 and Kongsberg maritime on floating winds.”

65
“Very often we are called via a call it a PCI contractor, typically Subsea 7 or Technip or.
Yeah, these big boys Deep Ocean.”

The analysis revealed that most participants connected collaboration mostly with customer
relationship and limited it to it. Participants 1, 2, and 4 discussed the importance of
collaboration in building customer relationships and engaging with clients to find solutions for
long-term challenges. One participant mentioned that collaborating with bigger niche players
is a strategy to gain more access to offshore wind projects.

5.3.4 Innovation as a success factor

Innovation was also another success factor that was discovered in literature and was assessed
in the interviews. Innovation was considered as an important criteria by the informants for their
transition towards offshore wind industry. Informants form 4 of 5 participating companies
mentioned innovation as an important success factor.

As presented above company 1 implemented different strategies to build their business in

renewable, including offshore wind. They had R&D department and an own unit dedicated to
business transition. Also, Participant 2 expressed that innovation is one of their core value and
explains that their company have been a frontrunner in adopting and providing environmentally
friendly solutions and innovative operational services for the clients.

Participant 2 elaborated on this by saying:

“Innovation is one of our absolute core values, so we have always kind of fronted environmentally
friendly and operationally sound solutions to our customers. So the first thing we do is not the first
thing then, but very often we front initiatives that can help them have a better operation, so it's
incredibly important, and I think that's one of our most important factors for the transition.”

Also Participant 3 and 4 confirmed the important of innovation for succeeding in offshore
wind. And further explains that especially floating offshore windfarms and the growing size of
offshore wind turbines will require more advanced vessels. These growing requirement in
offshore wind need increased focus on innovation. Participant 3 highlighted also that
innovation of environmentally fuel solutions will be important for offshore wind industry.

66
Participant 3 explains it in this way:

“For example the Haywind barge. Equinor hires one of these boats, so when they reach our
big Subsea boats that are 120 meters long. Hmmm. From it has a higher Station keeping, has
a larger weather window and can work 365 or at least much larger degree than a smaller ship.
So floating winds will thus require larger ships, more advanced ships with this system reference
systems, deck area cranes, 3D-cranes and so on.”

“So providing ships with ships that have reduced or optimized guilt consumption or emissions
are probably going to be more important in offshore wind in the future.”

Participant 4 statement confirmed this information:

“Specialized vessels within offshore wind as where Innovation will be important to be there it is very
often like that when you are going for many shipping companies, so think it is absolutely will be
absolutely necessary to go into.”

Most participants considered innovation to be a critical factor. Participant 1 shared that their
company has an R&D department and a dedicated unit for business transition, while Participant
2 stated that innovation is one of their core values. Participants 3 and 4 highlighted the
importance of innovation in developing more advanced vessels and environmentally-friendly
fuel solutions for the growing offshore wind industry, especially for floating offshore
windfarms and larger offshore wind turbines. Overall, the participants expressed the increasing
need to focus on innovation to succeed in the offshore wind industry.

5.3.5 Business model as a success factor

Business model was another themes that was discussed with the informants and a factor that
was mentioned by 3 of the participant. the three participants was concern about the uncertainty
regarding building a business model that can add value for customer, creates profit for the
company and a model that will allow optimal fleet utilization. Two of the participants was also
expressed that understanding the customer in offshore wind is challenging as they operates
differently from customers in oil and gas.

For example, participant 1 outlined that their biggest challenge is to prove the costumer that
their product can bring value for the customers in the offshore wind. At the same time
understanding the new value chain is also something they consider as challenging in the
emerging industrial regime. In one of the instance, Participant 1 explained it in this way:

67
“The challenge is, of course, we need to find our way or where we can add value and so far
that has probably been the biggest challenge for the new energy group in the company, to kind
of map out the markets, how the markets work both within carbon storage and also within
offshore wind. Kind of the value chain within those 2 businesses.”

“We have received a number of interesting and or number of companies contacting us to get a
better understanding of the service that we can provide compared to the traditional
geotechnical.”

Understanding of the customer is a big key factor to succeed in the growing offshore wind
industry. This factor was also identified by participant 2, who elaborated it as mentioned
previously. Further the in the interview it was also revealed that another reason for finding
appropriate business model is the low earing rates in offshore wind. Participant 2 said:

“It's understanding the customers in a way the customers a little bit different approach in oil
and gas compared to offshore wind, so there you have to kind of understand what the customers
need.”

“It's mainly that it's low rate, so it's difficult to find funding and find business models that are
good enough to make an investment.”

Participants from Company 4 gave another perspective to business models and connected it
with their capital-intensive assets. When Participant 4 and 5 was asked an open question about
business model, Participant 5 answered that finding a model that can utilize the vessels in oil
and gas and offshore wind industry is vital.

Participant 5 gave a short answer before elaborating on it:

“It's having vessels that is attractive in both industries. Both in oil and gas, and sea wind, who
can perform the desired job in both areas.”
The analysis showed the importance of finding a good business model for the represented OSV
firms in their transition to the offshore wind industry. Three participants highlighted the
challenges of creating a business model that adds value for customers, generates profits for the
company, and enables optimal fleet utilization. Two participants also noted that understanding
the offshore wind industry's unique customer requirements is challenging. Participants from

68
Company 4 also outlined the importance of finding a business model that can utilize the vessels
in both the oil and gas and offshore wind industries.

5.3.6. Communication
Communication emerged as a new themes in the data analysis since 2 of the participants was
giving much attention to it. The analysis of coded data reveals that communication plays a
major role in succeeding in offshore wind and the transition phase. Participant 1 and 2
elaborated the role of communication in their transition to offshore wind.

Participant 1 highlighted the significance of internal communication to ensure that all staff
members are aware of the transition. The person also explained in depth that the firms new
energy business was communicated via its website, corporate, and financial presentations.
Moreover, the utilization of various channels to promote their initiatives in renewable energy
made them more attractive employers and improved external awareness of their involvement
in offshore wind.

The coded data showed that Participant 1 explained the importance of communication in this
way:

“Well, of course it's communications with internal staff is important in terms of making people
aware of that. And we communicate this on our web page, we communicate our new energy
business in corporate presentations and financial presentations.”

“Yeah, channels, we can communicate our initiatives within the new energy business and also
we see that we are probably become somewhat more attractive employer over the last couple
of years as a result of that we have.”

“(…) in terms of both external people being more aware of that our services can be used for
more than just oil and gas, but also new energy businesses such as carbon storage and offshore
wind.”

During the discussion, Participant 2 emphasized the importance of maintaining an open

communication culture within their company, especially when dealing with new customers.
Moreover, the company has successfully established constructive and transparent dialogues
with clients in the offshore wind industry. It was outlined in this way:

“We have a strategy to have an open communication culture. And, and that's important in

69
terms of new customers.”

“(…) but at least we have made it work very well in terms of having an open and constructive
dialog with the customers as someone who is new in this field, yes.”

The analysis of coded data from two participants in the offshore wind industry reveals that
communication is a crucial factor in the transition phase to renewable energy. Internal
communication is essential to ensure all staff members are aware of the transition. External
communication promotes their initiatives in the new business areas and increases awareness of
their involvement in offshore wind. Maintaining an open communication culture was also
outlined as an important factor, especially when dealing with new customers. Establishing
constructive and transparent dialogues with clients in the offshore wind industry was a critical
factor for success.

5.3.7 Political support

The analysis uncovered a new theme related to political support, which was discussed by the
participants. The participant, especially one of them expressed the need for more political
interaction with the shipping industry. According to the participants, the support form
Norwegian government and politicians will be crucial in capitalizing the offshore wind
industry, where the competition is high with other OSV firms with support from their
government such as Germany and Dutch players.

The participating companies argued that Norwegian government should facilitate policies and
regulations that gives advantage rather than disadvantage when competing with international
actors. According to the informants the politician and governmental players can contribute by
“following the market and to have a good dialog with the business community and to be
responsive to it. So the input comes from the business community (…)”. Further they are
expressing that there should be political stability in regulations, legislations and policies related
to the offshore businesses.

70
Project scale as success factor
Further, another sub-themes was discovered and was connected to political support, namely
project scale. Project scale is highly linked with political factors, since the according to the
participant, politicians must increase the speed of facilitating a home market for offshore wind
and scale up the project supplies in order for Norwegian firms to succeed with a transition and
to taking a leading position in renewable energy sector. All of the participants have identified
project scale as a critical factor in the transition.

The interview data of participants from Company 1 and 2 reveals that both of them argued the
need for scale up and facilitate renewable and offshore wind projects in order to increase the
potential of these emerging industries. Participant 1 outlined that political framework for the
renewable businesses must be established in order to create markets. Participant 2 did also
argue that the activities of offshore wind projects need to be expanded and in order to increase
the potential of it.

Participant 1 articulated it in this way:

“It will be much easier to scale. Yes, you have some projects around there, early movers, but
again it's not scalable yet until you have kind of that political framework which eventually will
make market for CSS”

“So it's important with scale so that we are able to build order the continuity for the vessel we
have equipped with the key cable. So basically volume is the most critical part.”

While participant 2 said:

“It must be more that…the decision to expand the activity. That's the only thing that has to be
in a way. It becomes a bigger potential.”

“Political forces must rather be that in relation to the speed of development of the wind farms
in a way that in relation to potentially more activity it must be the only one.”

Additionally participants from company 4 did also verify the need for scaling up the projects.
While participant 6 argued that having a home market for offshore wind is crucial for building
an industry in it and pointing out that the Norwegian OSV firms have generate the revenues
from outside of the Norwegian territorial in offshore wind. Participant 4 acknowledged this in
under the interview and also added that “the Norwegian authorities are in some way involved

71
and help us to simply outcompete the Dutch and the Germans.” Moreover participant 6 outlined
that the political decision-making process and actual project implementation processes need to
be accelerated.

Participant 6 presented his perspective as follows:

“When you have a good supply of projects, we also do it in a way that you can scale up. But
that's again one of the big challenges in the offshore wind market is the need to scale up in
order to be able to create in a way to get a little bit more mass production and thus have better
earnings on it because it is.”

“That they are our members who are involved in offshore wind. They have had their earnings
exclusively outside Norway, more or less because there has been no market in Norway and the
domestic market will be quite important to really get the industrial side going.”

“But the ambitions are not really connected to the pace at which the development is going, and
that is again about, and that is what you kind of need from the politicians.”

The sub-theme of project scale was identified as critical for the success of Norwegian OSV
firms transition to offshore wind industries. All participants emphasized the need to scale
projects and expand activities, which requires a political framework to establish a home market
for offshore wind. Participants from different companies also agreed on the need for political
support through accelerating the decision-making and project implementation processes. The
participants' views highlighted the importance of political support and project scale for the
growth of the offshore wind industry in Norway.

72
A summary of analysis
In summary, the chapter presents a thematic analysis of primary data obtained through semi-
structured interviews with six industry experts. The aim was to explore the drivers, barriers,
and success factors for Norwegian OSV firms transition from the oil and gas industry to the
offshore wind industry. The main drivers identified were green investment, the potential for
growth, risk spreading, and transferable competence. However, there were several barriers,
such as technical, fiduciary, investment, and credit barriers, as well as activities in the oil and
gas industry and a lack of political support in Norway. Finally, the chapter highlighted clear
vision, collaboration with customers, appropriate business models, innovation, internal and
external communication, and political support as crucial success factors for transitioning to the
offshore wind industry and scaling up offshore wind projects in Norway. The table presents
the factor disclosed through literature and factors disclosed in thematic coding process. Green
color represents new factors from thematic coding which was not mentioned in literatures.

Coded transition factors from

Key concepts
primary data
Green investment drivers
Growing market opportunity
Drivers
Risk spreading
Transferable competence
Fiduciary duty (short-term
profitability
Low TC rates and margins
High investment barrier
Barriers
High credit barrier
O&G barriers
Technical barriers
Lack of political support
Clear and narrative vision
Capabilities
Collaboration

Success factors Innovation

Sustainable business models
Communication
Political support
Project scale
Total number of factors 19

Table 3: Table below presents the results of the thematic coding

73
6. Discussion
The findings presented in the previous chapter gave valuable insights to identify and explore
the drivers, barriers, and success factors for Norwegian OSV firms transition from the
oil and gas industry to the offshore wind industry. In additional, some factors was also
identified in literatures when literature review was conducted. The factor mentioned in the
literature was originally presented for transitions in other industries, or for topics such as
circular economics, sustainability, and transformation. Therefore was these factors evaluated
by the industry experts for determining their relevance and important for this particular
segment and topic.

Som transition factors from the literature aligns with the finding and therefore prove their
relevance for Norwegian OSV firs transition, while other contradicts with the findings, and
some are not mentioned in previous studies. These give interesting insight into the factors that
are peculiar for Norwegian OSV firms transition from oil and gas to offshore wind. The
objective of this chapter is to discuss these findings in detail and draw conclusion for the factors
that affect Norwegian offshore shipping companies’ transition to offshore wind. However it is
again worth mentioning that the research objective was to explore and identify the
influencing transition factors according to their function (drivers, barriers and success
factors) and not to find solutions for their implications.

Firstly the discussion will start with the transition drivers, and thereafter move to barriers and
finally to success factors, before concluding and providing some recommendation for further
research.

The identified factors from literature and the findings from data analysis are presented in the
table below. Yellow rows highlights the transition factor from literature that contradicts from
main findings, while green color highlights new findings.

74
 Transition factors from Main theme from primary Sub-themes from
Key concepts
literature data primary data
Lack of vessels Risk spreading
Economic drivers Growing market
Increasing freight rate opportunity
Drivers
Political alignment with Green investment
supportive policies Political driver drivers
Transferable competence
Short-term profitability Technical barriers
High investment cost O&G barriers
Lack of knowledge and Fiduciary duty (short-
skills term profitability
Low TC rates and
Barriers
Economic barrier margins
High investment cost
barrier
High credit barrier
Lack of political support
Clear and narrative vision Clear and narrative vision
Capabilities Capabilities
Collaboration Collaboration
Success factors Sustainable business
models Innovation
Innovation Sustainable business models
Communication
Political support Project scale

Table 4: The table present the transition factors from literature and from the primary data collection. Yellow=contradicting with
findings, Green= new findings.

75
6.1 The transition drivers
This section will discuss the transition drivers for Norwegian OSV firms as identified through
data analysis. The primary driver is related to economic benefits, including growing market
opportunities and risk spreading. Additionally, green investment was identified as a political
driver, while one driver related to competence has been identified, as the data analysis revealed
that the competence acquired by Norwegian OSV firms in the oil and gas industry is
transferable to the offshore wind industry. This has been a driving factor for many companies'
involvement in the offshore wind industry. In addition all drivers that was identified in
literature deviates from this function for Norwegian OSV companies. Although one exception
to some degree is green investment, which is consider as a political driver.

6.1.1 Green investment as political driver

Green investment in connection to the Norwegian OSV firms refers to the fact that it is easier
to finance a renewable project than a project related to oil and gas projects. This is an inevitable
regime-level change that drives the sustainable paradigm shift. For instance, as mentioned in
the literature the CBAM measure that is about to be implemented and the Paris agreement are
just two example of regime-level factors that influences the driver towards offshore wind.
Therefore, such political factors have pressured niche actors to change their activities to more
sustainable practices. The data analysis reveals that financial institutes like banks have become
far more risk-averse after the oil crisis in 2014. Thereby the banks are more unwilling to lending
money to OSV firms that want to invest in O&G projects.

At the same time, it will be easier for an offshore shipping firm to seek funding from the banks
for a green project, such as a vessel or equipment for offshore wind projects rather than for oil
and gas projects. In connection to the literature review, the lack of vessel for upcoming OWP
projects can further increase the day rates and also push the financial institutes to change their
behavior towards OSV firms, through political pressure.

The political frameworks and policies push the firms to invest in sustainable practices such as
offshore wind. Nevertheless, there is an evident lack of political support to drive a transition
of the Norwegian OSV segment, where the political frameworks lack supportive policy tools
to manage the transition in an economically variable way. For instance, OSV firms that
invested in green technologies had a funding system that had been shut down because the
government meant the funding favored the shareholders. At the same time, the system is still
available for the fishing segment. This indicates that more standardized policies and
76
frameworks are needed to facilitate an economically viable transition for OSV firms, which
also was outlined as the experts expressed that they need more political support from the
Norwegian government.

Overall, green investment policies drive the firms to make more sustainable choices and
emerge as a driver for Norwegian OSV firms' transition to offshore wind. At the same time,
there are significant need for better and more standardized policies from the political site.

6.1.2 Growing market opportunity and risk spreading as transition drivers

The offshore wind industry is rapidly growing and presents a significant opportunity for OSV
firms to capitalize on it. As identified in Chapter 3.2 and through data analysis, the growing
market opportunity was discovered as a driver for many participating firms. These firms view
the offshore wind industry as an opportunity to generate income and diversify their business
into the O&G and OWP markets to spread their risks. Diversification of contracts in both
offshore wind and oil and gas can reduce the risk of incurring losses due to market collapse or
unforeseen events. In addition to mitigating risk, such diversification can also provide firms
with a positive financial outcome by using the income from oil and gas to facilitate an
economically viable transition into the offshore wind industry.

The development of worldwide offshore wind projects is accelerating, which means it will
compete with the oil and gas industry for the same vessels. This competition can be leveraged
by shipowners to increase vessel utilization and push time charter rates upward. The factor lack
of vessel in literature review is therefore an underlying reason for increasing time charter rates.
However, it is important to note that current time charter rates and margins in the offshore wind
industry are not comparable to those in the O&G industry. Therefore, improving margin is a
crucial factor that needs to be addressed to increase the involvement of Norwegian OSV firms
in the offshore wind industry. Many companies are holding back due to this significant reason.

Despite the current challenges, the turnover of the offshore wind industry is rapidly increasing,
presenting a significant profit potential for the future. In particular, the informants suggest that
the floating wind farms segment is expected to grow in the coming years, and Norwegian OSV
firms can strategically position themselves to capture significant value in this segment. This
new segment in the offshore wind industry may be more profitable than the bottom-fixed wind
segment. Furthermore, to be a frontrunner and take a leading position in the sustainability
transition, companies need to capitalize on the offshore wind industry early. This involves
77
building strategic partnerships, developing technologies, and appropriate business models. By
doing so, OSV firms can take advantage of the growing offshore wind market and contribute
to the sustainability transition.

6.1.3 Transferable competence as driving force

The valuable expertise Norwegian OSV firms have developed over the years in offshore
operations is at the core of the firms. This competence, consisting of knowledge, skills, and
experience, has been a key driver for these firms to adapt their operations to offshore wind as
the need arose. For instance under the oil crisis some of the firms quickly utilized their fleet in
offshore wind industry. The competencies required for offshore wind projects are similar to
those needed in the oil and gas industry, and as such, the firms are able to transfer their
competencies and apply it to the offshore wind industry.

This driver contradicts the theoretical claim suggesting that offshore companies lack the
knowledge and skills required for a transition to sustainability. The data analysis has shown
that this barrier from the literature is not valid for Norwegian OSV players.

Despite the high level of offshore competence possessed by these firms, they still face new
challenges and barriers in the offshore wind industry. For instance, there are technical barriers
related to vessel development for floating wind farms and bottlenecks in developing
appropriate business models for generating economically sustainable growth in the industry.
These barriers need new competence to solve these challenges, which is crucial for firms to
succeed in the offshore wind industry. They can develop it by recruiting people from other
industrial domains, such as offshore wind, or collaborating within and across the industries to
bring new perspectives. Data analysis revealed that the OSV firms in Norway are using some
of these strategies to get new competencies for the transition.

6.1.4 Summary of the transition drivers

This section discussed the transition drivers for Norwegian offshore supply vessel firms toward
the offshore wind industry. One is the political driver, which is identified as green investment,
making it easier for firms to seek funding for sustainable projects rather than oil and gas
projects. However, there is a need for better and more standardized policies to facilitate an
economically viable transition for OSV firms. The growing market opportunity and risk
spreading also drive firms to capitalize on the rapidly growing offshore wind industry, but there
are challenges in improving margins and competing with the oil and gas industry. Finally,

78
transferable competence is a key driver as Norwegian OSV firms possess valuable expertise in
offshore operations that can be applied to the offshore wind industry, though new competencies
are needed to solve new challenges and barriers. Overall, these drivers highlight the importance
of political support, strategic partnerships, and developing appropriate business models to
facilitate a successful transition toward the offshore wind industry.

6.2 Transition barriers

The study contributes to identify the barrier for Norwegian OSV firms transition as well. The
3 barriers that was identified in the literature was also assessed with the expert. The study
resulted in identifying 4 economic barriers, a political barriers, a technical barrier and the O&G
activities turned out to be a barrier for the transition of Norwegian OSV firms to offshore wind.
This section will discuss the barrier that is impeding the transition of Norwegian OSV firms.

6.2.1 Economic barriers and O&G barrier

One of the economic barriers identified in literatures is the focus on short-term profitability
which refer to fiduciary duty among Norwegian OSV firms that was represented in the
primary data collection process. Participants emphasized that their fiduciary duty towards their
shareholders is main priority. This present a reasonable barrier for firms transition to the
offshore wind industry because this barrier is influenced by the underlying fact that there are
lower time charter rates (TC rates) and lower margins in the offshore wind industry
compared to the oil and gas industry. Low TC rates and margins in offshore wind was
considered by many experts as one of the biggest barriers.

Oil and gas activities are therefore a significant underlying barrier that hampers the transition.
Even if oil and gas activities are a new barrier is highly connected to economic barriers. The
oil and gas industry is also a dominant regime in Norway which attracts most of the
technological competence in the country and leaves the other industries with a shortage for
these technical competences such as ICT, digitalization and other engineering related
capabilities. However the experts had an ambiguous perception on the barrier lack of
knowledge and skills that was identified in the literature, but it is prominent that Norwegian
OSV segment is having the necessary knowledge and skills for operating in offshore wind
industry, because the competence from O&G is transferable to this new industry. The
discrepancy between the findings in the literature and the primary findings for the OSV
segment may be due to the fact that this niche is a part of the oil and gas value chain, which is

79
in contrast to other shipping segments such as liner shipping and port authorities that have been
researched by Raza et al. (2023) and Pagano et al. (2022).

Despite the dominant influence of the oil and gas industry as a barrier and its implications
discussed in the previous two paragraphs, it is important to note that low TC rates remain a
significant economic barrier hindering the transition of Norwegian OSV firms into the offshore
wind industry. However based on the data analysis, increasing TC rates in offshore wind
industry do not mean that the rates are comparable with the oil and gas rates, which again lead
to the conclusion that increasing TC rate in OWP was a subjective interpretation from me to
claim that it can be a driver. The primary data analysis gave more depth into this point and
proved to a wrong interpretation of the facts. For the industry experts, the increasing rates gives
positive signals, but again the OWP projects are not scaled up to the level they are profitable,
which again makes increasing TC rate irrelevant to be consider as a driving factor.

As long as profit margins remain lower in offshore wind than oil and gas, fiduciary duty will
continue to pose a significant barrier for Norwegian OSV firms in transitioning to this industry.
It is worth noting that fiduciary duty legally binds companies to act in the best interests of their
shareholders (Blincoe, 2022), and this focus on short-term profitability can therefore reduce
the willingness of OSV firms to invest in the long-term transition goals to enter the offshore
wind industry, as it was highlighted by Sletten et al., 2023.

The implications of fiduciary duty are significant, both for the OSV firms themselves and for
the offshore wind industry. By prioritizing short-term profitability over long-term growth and
sustainability, OSV firms may delay the opportunities to develop new capabilities and
technologies, establish new collaborations, and build a strong foothold in the rapidly growing
offshore wind market. In turn, this could slow the pace of the transition to a more sustainable
business as Mäkitie et.al (2019) mentioned. However another economic factor, the
investment cost does also pose a significant barrier in connection with fiduciary duty, as
investment in new capabilities and appropriate technologies are met with high cost.

The high investment cost is a significant barrier to the transition of Norwegian OSV firms to
the offshore wind industry, as highlighted in the existing literature and confirmed by the
experts. This barrier poses a significant challenge for OSV firms, as investing in capital-
intensive assets and organizational processes necessary to facilitate the transition is costly
which is in consistency with the findings of Sharma et al., (2023) and Shojaeddini et al., (2019).
80
The technology and vessels required for offshore wind operations are expensive, and their
profitability depends on the return on investment, which is currently uncertain due to the low
TC rates. The reason for such low rates is that the industry is still unprofitable. According to
data collection, offshore wind projects often receive subsidies, which can convince them to
prioritize cost reduction.

For example, a seismic or anchor handling newbuilding vessel can cost up to half a billion
Norwegian crones, making it a significant economic risk for the firm and the financial
institutes. The study of Hessevik, (2022) indicated that oil crisis and pandemic impaired many
offshore firms and imposed a risk for companies to invest in new assets. As the reason of the
market downturn the banks have become increasingly risk averse and the credit barrier are
therefore relatively high for Norwegian OSV firms. This barrier certainly hamper the further
investment in vessels, technologies and other critical resources for further development within
the offshore wind industry. Such a risk adverse behavior from banks are reasonable as many
of them have experienced high loss, but at the same time this indicate that Norway need new
financial frameworks and policies in order to make a move towards more sustainable
businesses. This is again dependent on them regime level factors, such as the political factors
in order to succeed with a transition from O&G industry.

6.2.2 The technical barrier

During the interviews, experts highlighted the importance of these factors in the context of the
transition to offshore wind. For instance, the industry is still unfamiliar to many Norwegian
OSV firms, because it gives them uncertainty regarding the return on investment for such
capital-intensive investments. At the same time, the technology in the offshore wind industry
is still not matured or standardized, and new solutions are being developing and implementing
rapidly. This present a technical barrier for Norwegian OSV firms.

For instance, the ships relevant for operation five years ago is irrelevant today because of the
rapidly increasing size of wind turbines. Another example is that there are still no standardized
anchoring solutions for floating turbines, which poses a significant risk for OSV firms that
invest in vessels for current anchoring solutions since after five years when the vessel is ready
to enter the market, it might not be fit for such operations. Such technical barrier is therefore
connected to the investment cost as well and poses a significant implication for investing in
technologies and resources for offshore wind industry. Therefore this barrier creates numerous

81
technical obstacles that must be addressed before these firms can fully embrace the transition.
This barrier was addressed in literature presented in chapter 3.2.1 to some extend where it is
clear that the different vessel requirement in OWP compared to O&G will create challenges
(Palmer, 2021). At the same time, the findings proved that Norwegian OSV firms are capable
to carry out the operation of OWP Projects safely and that they have the necessary competence
to operate in this industry, which contradict this the literature.

Therefore, multiple underlying economic risk factors and political factors are associated with
investing in such assets, also including profitability, offshore wind project supply, and the
offshore wind industry's technological and institutional maturity.

The risk associated with such capital-intensive investments is a significant barrier for
Norwegian OSV firms. So far, as observed through interviews, it seems like there is a lack of
constructive communication and collaboration between the offshore cluster and the
Norwegian government (politicians and policymakers). Since some of them are expressing that
politicians often do not listen to the firms and are still slow in accelerating the offshore wind
development projects. Considering this the lack of political support a significant barrier to
the transition of Norwegian OSV firms to the offshore wind industry.

6.2.3 Lack of political support

The analysis shows that there are lack of political support to facilitate a smooth transition for
Norwegian OSV firms. however, this is contradictory to how literature review, where political
support was interpreted as a driver, similarly to TC rates. The studies of Normann (2015) Roux
et al. (2022) outlined how insufficient political supports led Norway and Ireland fail their
attempt to capitalize OWP. However these cases where relatively od and since the international
politics in recent years had engaged to support renewables, it was therefore interpreted that
there was enough political support for Norwegian OSV firms as well. it has been proven wrong
by the experts from Norwegian OSV segment. Rather they was clearly indicating that both
international and national supports regarding taxation regulations, funding systems and
predicable frameworks when competing with international players could all be improved.

In summary of transition barrier, it is clear that the economic-, technical- and political barriers
hamper the transition of Norwegian OSV firms towards offshore wind. The barriers also affect
each other and make it even more complicated for the companies to manage the challenges
they create.
82
The economic barriers, such as the fiduciary duty and high investment cost, align with previous
research and show that they are also transferable to the Norwegian OSV firm transition. While
Low TC rates and margins and high credit barrier is new findings that emerged from data
analysis. As explained, low TC rates and margin barrier contradict the literature that has been
reviewed and shows that increasing the freight rate is not a driver for the firms since the TC
rates are still lower than those in the oil and gas industry. Therefore oil and gas activities are a
significant barrier to the transition of these firms to offshore wind. At the same time, the
technical and political barriers are also new findings where the political barrier contradicts the
literature.

6.2.4 Summary of barrier

Norwegian OSV firms seeking to transition to the offshore wind industry face numerous
barriers that hinder their efforts and also willingness. One of the barriers is the fiduciary duty
that prioritizes short-term profitability over long-term growth and sustainability, making it
difficult to invest in capital-intensive assets and organizational processes. Low time charter
rates and margins in the offshore wind compared to the rate in the O&G industry further
exacerbate this challenge, along with the high investment cost required for new capabilities
and appropriate technologies necessary for offshore wind operations.

The transition is also hindered by political barriers, as there is a lack of constructive

communication and collaboration between the offshore cluster and the Norwegian government.
The absence of political support regarding taxation regulations, funding systems, and stable
frameworks when competing with international players is a significant barrier to the transition
of Norwegian OSV firms to the offshore wind industry.

83
6.3 Success factors
The success factors identified in the literature were all mentioned by the experts and are critical
for the transition of Norwegian OSV firms to the offshore wind industry. These factors include
a clear and narrative vision, capabilities, collaboration, innovation, and a sustainable
business model. In addition, three other factors emerged from the data analysis:
communication, political support, and project scale. These factors will also play an essential
role in the success of the transition.

6.3.1 A clear and narrative vision

A clear and narrative vision is crucial for companies looking to transition towards more
sustainable business (Long et al., 2018)., as it provides the backbone for navigating through in
transition. Without a clear vision, other success factors, such as building dynamic capabilities
or collaborating with external organizations, become much more challenging. For instance, a
vision that take offshore wind into account for the firm’s operation can drive the companies to
innovate and develop technologies that capitalize on offshore wind opportunities. However,
the interviews with experts revealed that many OSV companies do not have a clear vision for
sustainable business. Instead, they make strategic decisions to increase their involvement in the
offshore wind. The data collection process also revealed that some Norwegian OSV firms are
not planning to capitalize on the offshore wind industry at all, as they do not consider it
profitable enough.

Nevertheless, a clear vision is essential for communicating with external stakeholders, such as
customers, governments, and the public (Long et al., 2018). It enables companies to express
their long-term goals and follow a trajectory toward more sustainable business practices, as
Hernández-Chea et al., (2021) concluded in their research. Forming such a vison can be extra
important for offshore wind industry as the OWP projects are characterized with long project
lie and the actors might look for partners and alliances what are communicating that they will
stay in the industry as a stable players. Company vision that shows this characters can help to
gain more costumer and build better network in the offshore wind industry.

This is also becoming increasingly important due to global climate goal targets, such as the UN
and EU's sustainable development goals and new regulations to reduce carbon emissions, e.g
CII and CBAM. Without a clear vision, companies may struggle to adapt to stricter regulations
and lose opportunities to capitalize on the growing offshore wind industry and the demand for
sustainable business practices. Therefore, a clear vision communicating the transition plays a
84
significant role in capitalizing on market opportunities and forming a trajectory towards a
transition to sustainable business areas, such as offshore wind. By doing so, companies can
position themselves as leaders in the transition to a more sustainable future while also meeting
the demands of customers, governments, and society. Based on this, the Norwegian OSV firms
that are planning to capitalize offshore wind is recommended to revise their vison in order to
succeed in the new energy industry.

6.3.2 Capabilities and collaboration

The success factors of capabilities and collaboration are crucial for companies transitioning
to the offshore wind industry. The literature review demonstrates that these factors are highly
interrelated and are vital in facilitating a successful transition as Loorbach & Wijsman (2013)
outlined. By gaining more knowledge, skills, and competencies through collaboration with
customers, other OSV firms, politicians, and policymakers, the firms can enable the innovation
necessary for the transition. The data analysis in this study revealed that Norwegian OSV firms
emphasize necessary knowledge, skills, and competence and need to continuously improve to
capitalize the offshore wind. Because for new entries, the knowledge about the market can be
limiting factor in order to evaluate the risk, calculate economical viabilities and to develop an
appropriate business model, as many participants also expressed.

Moreover, the Norwegian OSV firms possess valuable capabilities gained through their
extensive experience in the oil and gas industry, particularly in harsh geographical locations
such as the North Sea. These capabilities include safe operations, technological advancements,
and strategic partnerships, which are critical for success in the offshore wind industry. With
these capabilities, they are well-positioned to levelize this factor and capitalize on the
opportunities presented by offshore wind. Also Gorissen et al. (2016) confirmed that the
capabilities of people are critical in order to succeed with the transition. The data analysis
shows that the firms highly value and trust their capabilities and therefore predicts that
Norwegian OSV firms will play an essential role in the future of the Offshore wind industry.

Furthermore, collaboration does not only enable firms to develop new capabilities and facilitate
innovation, but it also allows for the reevaluation and correction of the transition trajectory
according to needs. For instance, better collaboration with offshore wind developers and
operators can provide solutions to uncertainties surrounding floating windfarms, which are
currently a major challenge. Moreover, most SOV vessels in use today are not fit to carry out

85
operations for floating wind, as it requires larger and more advanced vessels. Such challenges
can be overcome through better collaboration with a diverse network of actors, and thereby the
firms can reinforce the transition trajectory. This example consist with the literature that argues
collaboration will enable cross function learning and further fuel a successful transition (Bag
& Rahman, 2021; Gorissen et al., 2016; Loorbach & Wijsman, 2013)

Norwegian OSV firms face one major challenge related to collaboration. One of the most
important is the lack of collaboration between the OSV firms, or the shipping industry in
general, and the Norwegian government. With collaboration with the government, firms may
be able to scale projects, develop better frameworks, and receive adequate support to compete
with international actors who have good support from their governments. Norwegian OSV
firms must prioritize collaboration with the government and other stakeholders to develop
effective solutions and succeed in the offshore wind industry. Collaboration is therefore a
significant success factor for Norwegian OSV firms that should not be overlooked. By fostering
collaboration and developing arenas for collaboration, these firms can position themselves as
leaders in the transition to a more sustainable future and capitalize on the growing demand for
offshore wind.

6.3.3 Innovation and business model

Innovation is a success factor for the transition of Norwegian OSV firms from oil and gas to
the offshore wind industry. This is because transitioning from one dominant regime to another
requires a shift in regulations, infrastructure, business models, and technologies (Bidmon &
Knab, 2018). Without innovation in these areas, it will be challenging for Norwegian OSV
firms to gain a leading position in the offshore wind industry. Innovation in new vessel
technologies, business models, and policies is crucial to address the industry's technological
challenges, not only for the wind turbines but also for vessels that need to handle more
advanced operations as offshore floating wind commercializes. Norwegian OSV firms can
leverage their existing capabilities and collaborate with other industry players to generate new
innovative solutions as they already possess a high level of knowledge and competence, as
Borch and Solesvik's (2015) discussed in their research.

The data analysis highlights the importance of new business models as many firms struggle to
understand the market and find appropriate ways to add value to prove to their customers.
Norwegian OSV firms must be innovative and develop sustainable business models to

86
capitalize on the growing market and generate sustainable revenue. For instance, EPCI-
alliances, where the firms work closely with bigger companies vertically or horizontally within
the value chain to gain more access to offshore wind projects. Norwegian OSV firms could
also consider integrating part of the value chain into their business, providing end-to-end or
more integrated services, which can help generate more revenue (Löhr & Mattes, 2022).

It is clear from the literature review and data analysis that having an appropriate business model
will be a crucial success factor for the transition of Norwegian OSV firms to the offshore wind
industry. Developing innovative business models will enable them to capture the growing
market, generate sustainable revenue, and take a leading position in the offshore wind industry.
Therefore, Norwegian OSV firms must focus on developing new business models through
innovation to achieve a successful transition.

6.3.4 Communication and political support

The analysis of the coded data revealed that communication and political support are crucial
factors for success in the offshore wind industry. Internal communication is essential to ensure
that all staff members know about the involvement in more sustainable industries. External
communication, through various channels such as corporate presentations and the company
website, promotes the company's initiatives in renewable energy and increases awareness of
their involvement in offshore wind. Maintaining an open communication culture is also
important, mainly when dealing with new customers and building a new network.

Political support emerged as another important theme in the analysis, with the participants
highlighting the need for more interaction between the Norwegian government and the
shipping industry. The data analysis showed that the support of the Norwegian government and
politicians would be crucial in capitalizing on the offshore wind industry, where competition
is high with other OSV firms that receive support from their governments, such as Germany
and the Netherlands. It is clear that better political support in terms of more stable regulatory
frameworks, legislation, and policies related to offshore wind businesses is absolutely a critical
factor for the Norwegian OSV firms to succeed in offshore wind.

The need for more political support indicates that there should be better communication and
collaboration between the parties. Therefore, creating common transition arenas where
politicians, OSV firms, and OWP firms can interact would allow the parties to develop
common goals and visions for the transition. For example through communication in such
87
arean could the parties address solutions for technical barriers, a home market for OWP, and
faster decision-making measures. The idea of a transition arena where different stakeholders
are invited to address and find common solutions has been successful in the Netherlands,
Germany, and Belgium to manage transition-related challenges (Bramati, 2016; Gorissen et
al., 2016). Therefore, such an initiative could increase the collaboration and political support
to the OSV segment.

6.3.4.1 Project scaling

Norway government newly announced tender for 2 offshore wind farm development areas,
namely Utsira Nord and Sørlig Nordsjø II. However the government also outlines that they
have ambitions to build offshore wind farms with a capacity of 30 GW before 2040
(energidepartementet, 2023). This indicates that the ambitions of politician are high, but taking
this into a bigger picture, it shows that countries with less suitable environment, capabilities
and infrastructure such as Belgium have managed to develop more OWP capacity than Norway
(Belgian Offshore Wind Energy, n.d.). This gives a clear picture that even if the natural
resources and experience and capabilities of Norway is internationally competitive, the
industrial players, among other OSV firms will struggle to transit their business to offshore
wind without enough projects on home market, where they can have a competitive advantage
over other international actors.

Norwegian politicians are lagging behind other countries in decision- making process for
offshore wind in Norway. The available natural resource and capabilities alone is not enough
for the market to be profitable as long as the project volume is not increasing. Scaling up the
project supply can help the OSV firms to capitalize on experience and capabilities in order to
take a leading position in the industry. project scaling is therefore an important success factor
for the transition of Norwegian OSV firm to offshore wind industry.

88
6.3.5 Summary of the success factors
To summarize, the success factors for Norwegian OSV firms in transitioning to the offshore
wind industry are transition-focused clear and narrative vision, collaboration, innovation,
appropriate sustainable business model and political support. A transition-focused vision can
help promote innovation, collaboration, and communication of transition goals internally and
externally. Collaboration with customers, politicians, OWP actors, and other OSV firms can
help gain knowledge and enable innovation. Norwegian OSV firms must find innovative
business models, and technologies to succeed in offshore wind.

Developing new business models through innovation is crucial for Norwegian OSV firms to
capture the growing offshore wind market and achieve a successful transition. Effective
communication and political support are critical for success in the offshore wind industry, and
scaling up the project supply is important for Norwegian OSV firms to capitalize on their
experience and capabilities in order to drive a profitable business in offshore wind industry.
Overall, the transition of Norwegian OSV firms to the offshore wind industry is dependent on
the resented success factors, and the firms might need comprehensive strategical actions in
order to succeed with their gradual transition to offshore wind industry.

6.4 Research limitation

Although this study has provided valuable insights into the research topic, there are several
limitations that must be acknowledged and addressed. This section will outline these
limitations and their potential impact on the generalizability and validity of the findings.

Firstly, the sample size of this study was small, as only six experts from five firms participated
in the data collection process. As a result, not all types of offshore shipping companies were
represented, which may have limited the extent to which the findings can be generalized. For
instance, if a particular company type was not included, the degree to which transferable
knowledge can be a driver for that type of company remains unclear. This limitation could
question the credibility and of the findings.

Secondly, data collection was performed in different languages, with the first interview
conducted in English and the second in Norwegian. While the participant who conducted the
interview in English was comfortable with the language, this may have affected the raw data.
Additionally, the translation process required manual rewriting due to certain terms,

89
abbreviations, and linguistic variations that led Teams transcription function to mis-script some
information. However, these discrepancies were manually corrected.

Thirdly, the data analysis process could have been affected by subjective interpretations.
Although Nvivo was utilized to ensure the quality of the data analysis process through thematic
analysis, some information could have been avoided or subjectively interpreted. For instance,
it was sometimes difficult to distinguish whether a factor was a barrier or a success factor. In
this regard, personal experiences and knowledge may have influenced the findings. This was
especially true since the data collection methodology utilized was a semi-structured interview,
allowing participants to freely discuss factors without being interrupted, which led them to
reveal the transition factors without a chronological order. This created some challenges in
distinguishing the factors, especially barriers form success factors.

7. Conclusion
In conclusion, this exploratory study has contributed to explore the drivers, barriers and
success factors that affect the transition of Norwegian offshore service vessel firms from
oil and gas to offshore wind industry. The study has identified four drivers, seven barriers,
and eight success factors that need to be considered for a successful transition.

This study's research findings indicate that the foremost drivers for transitioning Norwegian
OSV firms to the offshore wind industry are economical. These drivers include growing market
opportunities, risk spreading, green investment, and transferable competencies. Conversely,
the study has also identified several barriers that inhibit this transition, predominantly
economic barriers such as fiduciary duty, low time charter rates and margins, high investment
costs, and high credit barriers. Additionally, the profitability of the Oil & Gas industry relative
to the offshore wind industry serves as a barrier to this transition for OSV firms. In addition,
technical barrier and lack of political support hinder the transition further. Lastly, the study
reveals that the success factors for OSV firms in this transition are having a clear and narrative
vision, strong firm capabilities, collaboration, innovation, sustainable business models,
communication, and political support, and also scaling the projects will be critical for the
transition of the firms- project scale. The table 5 summarize the transition factor for Norwegian
OSV firms.

90
 Drivers Barriers Success factors
Growing market opportunity Fiduciary duty Clear and narrative vision
Risk spreading Low TC rates and margins Capabilities
Green investment High investment cost Collaboration
Transferable competence High credit barrier Innovation
Sustainable business
O&G barriers models
Technical barriers Communication

Lack of political support Political support

Project scale (expand
projects supply)
Table 5: The transition driver, barriers and success factors are organized in the table.

Chapter 6 highlights the interconnectedness of the factors involved in the transition of

Norwegian OSV firms from the oil and gas industry to the offshore wind industry. This
interdependence can make managing the transition even more challenging. However, the
primary objective of this exploratory research paper is to identify these factors rather than
addressing their connections or level of impact on the transition. Thus, a potential research
problem for future studies would be to assess the interconnections and their impact on the
transition of Norwegian OSV firms.

The data analysis reveals that certain areas received more attention from the experts and piqued
their interest. Particularly, the need for a sustainable business model was emphasized, as the
OSV firms need to find appropriate solutions for capitalizing on the offshore wind industry,
especially when floating offshore wind farms become commercially viable. Another area of
interest was the lack of political support, and the experts stressed the need to improve the
relationship between OSV firms and politicians. As the transition to the offshore wind industry
will be a gradual and long-term process, a healthy relationship between the government and
the OSV segment is critical.

Finally this study has contributed to the existing body of knowledge in the field of transition
management and sustainability in the Norwegian OSV segment. Furthermore, the results of
this study provides valuable insights into the factors that affects Norwegian OSV companies
as they navigate through the gradual and long-term transition from the oil and gas industry to
the offshore wind industry.

91
 Bibliography
ACP. (n.d.). Offshore Wind Vessel Needs. ACP. Retrieved April 21, 2023, from
https://cleanpower.org/resources/offshore-wind-vessel-needs/
Afewerki, S., Aspelund, A., Bjørgum, Ø., Hanson, J., Karlsen, A., Assiya, K., Håkon, N., Markus,
S., & Sæther, E. (2019). CONDITIONS FOR GROWTH IN THE NORWEGIAN OFFSHORE
WIND INDUSTRY. https://www.ntnu.no/documents/7414984/0/CenSES-Offshore-wind-
report-v9-digital.pdf/749a6503-d342-46f2-973e-eb9714572931

Andreassen, Ø., Lindseth, K. B., & Erdal, E. (2021). Delivery model for Offshore wind. Norsk
industri. https://www.norskindustri.no/siteassets/dokumenter/rapporter-og-
brosjyrer/leveransemodeller-havvind/leveransemodeller-havvind_drift-og-vedlikehold.pdf

Asgarpour, M. (2016). 17—Assembly, transportation, installation and commissioning of offshore

wind farms. In C. Ng & L. Ran (Eds.), Offshore Wind Farms (pp. 527–541). Woodhead
Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-08-100779-2.00017-9

Bach, H., Bergek, A., Bjørgum, Ø., Hansen, T., Kenzhegaliyeva, A., & Steen, M. (2020).
Implementing maritime battery-electric and hydrogen solutions: A technological innovation
systems analysis. Transportation Research Part D: Transport and Environment, 87, 102492.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trd.2020.102492

Bag, S., & Rahman, M. S. (2021). The role of capabilities in shaping sustainable supply chain
flexibility and enhancing circular economy-target performance: An empirical study. Supply
Chain Management: An International Journal, 28(1), 162–178. https://doi.org/10.1108/SCM-
05-2021-0246

Basso, M. N., Haugland, L. M., Abrahamoglu, S., Aslesen, S., & Jakobsen, E. (n.d.). MARITIM
VERDISKAPINGSRAPPORT 2022 (No. 10/202). Menon Economics. Retrieved January 5,
2023, from http://s3-eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/maritimt-forum.no/documents/Maritim-
verdiskapingsrapport-2022-Endelig-versjon.pdf

Belgian offshore wind energy. (n.d.). FPS Economy. Retrieved May 11, 2023, from
https://economie.fgov.be/en/themes/energy/belgian-offshore-wind-energy

Bell, E., Bryman, A., & Harley, B. (2018). Business Research Methods. Oxford University Press.

Bergek, A., Bjørgum, Ø., Hansen, T., Hanson, J., & Steen, M. (2021). Sustainability transitions in
coastal shipping: The role of regime segmentation—ScienceDirect. In Transportation
Research Interdisciplinary Perspectives (Vol. 12). Science Direct. https://www-
sciencedirect-com.ezproxy2.usn.no/science/article/pii/S2590198221002025

Bidmon, C. M., & Knab, S. F. (2018). The three roles of business models in societal transitions:
New linkages between business model and transition research. Journal of Cleaner
Production, 178, 903–916. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2017.12.198

92
Blincoe, K. (2022). Barriers Hindering Transition to Sustainability. In K. Blincoe (Ed.), Achieving
Sustainability: The Ultimate Human Challenge: Critical Barriers and Future Perspectives
(pp. 121–137). Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-10023-
9_7

Borch, O. J., & Solesvik, M. (2015). Innovation on the Open Sea: Examining Competence
Transfer and Open Innovation in the Design of Offshore Vessels.
https://munin.uit.no/handle/10037/8623

Börner, T. (2022, September 21). Offshore vessels | Clarksons. Clarkson.

https://www.clarksons.com/home/news-and-insights/2022/construction-support-offshore-
vessel-csov-market-update/

Bryman, A. (2012). Social research methods (4th ed). Oxford University Press.

Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism. (n.d.). Retrieved April 30, 2023, from https://taxation-
customs.ec.europa.eu/green-taxation-0/carbon-border-adjustment-mechanism_en

Clarkson Shipping intelligent weekly (1,572). (2023). Clarkson Research.

https://www.clarksons.net/api/download/SIN/download/efc6e2af-50a2-4f2d-8acf-
79dda557fb21?downloadInline=true

CORPORATIVA, I. (n.d.). Parques eólicos marinos: Los colosos del mar. Iberdrola. Retrieved
April 20, 2023, from https://www.iberdrola.com/sustainability/how-does-offshore-wind-
energy-work

DOF Subsea. (n.d.). Retrieved April 24, 2023, from https://www.dofsubsea.com/

Dokkum, K. van. (2003). Ship knowledge: A modern encyclopedia. DOKMAR.

Dudovskiy, J. (n.d.). Data Collection Methods. Research-Methodology. Retrieved March 25, 2023,
from https://research-methodology.net/research-methods/data-collection/

Eivind, M., Kielland, S., Attlmayr, D., Bolsø, A., Dale, M., Vevatne, T. I., & Notkevich, L.
(2020). Offshore wind opportunities for the norwegian industry.
https://www.regjeringen.no/contentassets/07635c56b2824103909fab5f31f81469/offshore-
wind-opportunities-for-the-norwegian-industry.pdf

Endrerud, O.-E. V., Liyanage, J. P., & Keseric, N. (2014). Marine logistics decision support for
operation and maintenance of offshore wind parks with a multi method simulation model.
Proceedings of the Winter Simulation Conference 2014, 1712–1722.
https://doi.org/10.1109/WSC.2014.7020021

energidepartementet, O. (2020, June 12). Opner områder for havvind i Noreg [Pressemelding].
Regjeringa.no; regjeringen.no. https://www.regjeringen.no/nn/dokumentarkiv/regjeringa-

93
 solberg/aktuelt-regjeringen-solberg/aktuelt1/pressemeldingar/2020/opner-
omrader/id2705986/

energidepartementet, O. (2023, March 29). Havvind [Oversiktsside]. Regjeringen.no;

regjeringen.no. https://www.regjeringen.no/no/tema/energi/landingssider/havvind/id2830329/

European Environment Agency. (2022, December 15). [Figure]. https://www.eea.europa.eu/data-

and-maps/figures/development-of-wind-farm-areas

Fernández, L. (2023, April 14). Global offshore wind energy capacity 2022. Statista.
https://www.statista.com/statistics/476327/global-capacity-of-offshore-wind-energy/

Foundation Installation Vessels. (n.d.). Ulstein. Retrieved April 23, 2023, from
https://ulstein.com/ship-design/foundation-installation-vessels

Frankfort-Nachmias, C., Nachmias, D., & DeWaard, J. (2015). Research methods in the social
sciences (Eighth edition). Worth Publishers, a Macmillan Education Company.

Gaidai, O., Xu, X., Wang, J., Ye, R., Cheng, Y., & Karpa, O. (2020). SEM-REV offshore energy
site wind-wave bivariate statistics by hindcast. Renewable Energy, 156, 689–695.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.renene.2020.04.113

Geels, F. W. (2002). Technological transitions as evolutionary reconfiguration processes: A multi-

level perspective and a case-study. Research Policy, 31(8), 1257–1274.
https://doi.org/10.1016/S0048-7333(02)00062-8

Geels, F. W. (2011). The multi-level perspective on sustainability transitions: Responses to seven

criticisms. Environmental Innovation and Societal Transitions, 1(1), 24–40.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eist.2011.02.002

Geels, F. W. (2018). Disruption and low-carbon system transformation: Progress and new
challenges in socio-technical transitions research and the Multi-Level Perspective. Energy
Research & Social Science, 37, 224–231. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.erss.2017.10.010

Gjøsæter, Å. S., Kyvik, Ø., Nesse, J. G., & Årethun, T. (2021). Business models as framework for
sustainable value-creation Strategic and operative leadership challenges. 50-74.
https://doi.org/10.1504/IJISD.2021.111549

Gordon, S. (2023, March 14). Shipping Intelligence Network. Clarkson Intelligence.

https://sin.clarksons.net/News/Article/186615

Gorissen, L., Vrancken, K., & Manshoven, S. (2016). Transition Thinking and Business Model
Innovation–Towards a Transformative Business Model and New Role for the Reuse Centers
of Limburg, Belgium. Sustainability, 8(2), 112. https://doi.org/10.3390/su8020112

94
Govindan, K. (2023). Pathways to low carbon energy transition through multi criteria assessment
of offshore wind energy barriers. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 187,
122131. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2022.122131

Guldberg, S. (n.d.). March 2022 | Norwegian Shipowners’ Association.

https://www.rederi.no/contentassets/a0a84c67c821473ba5f3ef127d219d28/maritimeoutlook2
022.pdf

Guo, Y., Wang, H., & Lian, J. (2022). Review of integrated installation technologies for offshore
wind turbines: Current progress and future development trends. Energy Conversion and
Management, 255, 115319. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enconman.2022.115319

Havila Shipping ASA • Havila Shipping ASA. (n.d.). Retrieved April 19, 2023, from
https://www.havilashipping.no:443/

Hernández-Chea, R., Jain, A., Bocken, N. M. P., & Gurtoo, A. (2021). The Business Model in
Sustainability Transitions: A Conceptualization. Sustainability, 13(11), 5763.
https://doi.org/10.3390/su13115763

Hessevik, A. (2022). Green shipping networks as drivers of decarbonization in offshore shipping

companies. Maritime Transport Research, 3, 100053.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.martra.2022.100053

Igba, J., Alemzadeh, K., Durugbo, C., & Henningsen, K. (2014). Through-life Engineering
Services: A Wind Turbine Perspective. Procedia CIRP, 22, 213–218.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.procir.2014.07.021

Jack-up heavy lift vessels for WTIV and O&M. (n.d.). Ulstein. Retrieved April 23, 2023, from
https://ulstein.com/ship-design/jack-up

Jakobsen, E., & Espelien, A. (2011). Norske offshorerederier—Skaper verdier lokalt, vinner
globalt. Menon Economic. https://www.menon.no/publication/norske-offshorerederier-
skaper-verdier-lokalt-vinner-globalt/

Jenkins, J., Malho, M., & Hyytiäinen, K. (2022). Regionally extended shared socioeconomic
pathways for the offshore wind industry in Finland. Energy, Ecology and Environment, 7(6),
533–545. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40974-022-00252-7

Kaiser, M. J., & Snyder, B. F. (2012). Offshore wind energy cost modeling: Installation and
decommissioning. Springer.

Kemp, R., Loorbach, D., & Rotmans, J. (2007). Transition management as a model for managing
processes of co-evolution towards sustainable development. International Journal of
Sustainable Development & World Ecology, 14(1), 78–91.
https://doi.org/10.1080/13504500709469709

95
Kern, F., Smith, A., Shaw, C., Raven, R., & Verhees, B. (2014). From laggard to leader:
Explaining offshore wind developments in the UK. Energy Policy, 69, 635–646.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enpol.2014.02.031

Kiger, M. E., & Varpio, L. (2020). Thematic analysis of qualitative data: AMEE Guide No. 131.
Medical Teacher, 42(8), 846–854. https://doi.org/10.1080/0142159X.2020.1755030

Koh, J. H., & Ng, E. Y. K. (2016). Downwind offshore wind turbines: Opportunities, trends and
technical challenges. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 54, 797–808.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rser.2015.10.096

Kolakowski, P., & Rutkowski, G. (2022). The Analysis of Offshore Industry Transition—
Acceleration from Oil and Gas to Wind. TransNav, the International Journal on Marine
Navigation and Safety of Sea Transportation, 16(2), 375–384.
https://doi.org/10.12716/1001.16.02.20

Kothari, C. R. (2004). Research methodology: Methods & techniques (2nd rev. ed). New Age
International (P) Ltd.

Kyvik, Ø., & Gjøsæter, Å. (2017). Environmentally sustainable innovations in offshore shipping:
A comparative case study. 105-131. https://hvlopen.brage.unit.no/hvlopen-
xmlui/handle/11250/2622060

Lerche, J., Lorentzen, S., Enevoldsen, P., & Neve, H. H. (2022). The impact of COVID -19 on
offshore wind project productivity – A case study. Renewable and Sustainable Energy
Reviews, 158, 112188. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rser.2022.112188

Löhr, M., & Mattes, J. (2022). Facing transition phase two: Analysing actor strategies in a
stagnating acceleration phase. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 174, 121221.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2021.121221

Long, T. B., Looijen, A., & Blok, V. (2018). Critical success factors for the transition to business
models for sustainability in the food and beverage industry in the Netherlands. Journal of
Cleaner Production, 175, 82–95. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2017.11.067

Loorbach, D., & Wijsman, K. (2013). Business transition management: Exploring a new role for
business in sustainability transitions. Journal of Cleaner Production, 45, 20–28.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2012.11.002

Lu, H., Guo, L., & Zhang, Y. (2019). Oil and gas companies’ low-carbon emission transition to
integrated energy companies. Science of The Total Environment, 686, 1202–1209.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.06.014

96
Magnusson, T., & Werner, V. (2022). Conceptualisations of incumbent firms in sustainability
transitions: Insights from organisation theory and a systematic literature review. Business
Strategy and the Environment, 32(2), 903–919. https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.3081

Mäkitie, T., Normann, H. E., Thune, T. M., & Sraml Gonzalez, J. (2019). The green flings:
Norwegian oil and gas industry’s engagement in offshore wind power. Energy Policy, 127,
269–279. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enpol.2018.12.015

Manning, J. (2017). In Vivo Coding. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118901731.iecrm0270

Markus, D., Wüchner, R., & Bletzinger, K.-U. (2013). A numerical investigation of combined
wave–current loads on tidal stream generators. Ocean Engineering, 72, 416–428.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.oceaneng.2013.07.023

Midttun, Ø. (2020, August 28). Offshore wind power. https://www.ptil.no/en/technical-

competence/explore-technical-subjects/features/2020/offshore-wind-power/

Munim, Z. H., Dushenko, M., Jimenez, V. J., Shakil, M. H., & Imset, M. (2020). Big data and
artificial intelligence in the maritime industry: A bibliometric review and future research
directions. Maritime Policy & Management, 47(5), 577–597.
https://doi.org/10.1080/03088839.2020.1788731

Nations, U. (2015). The Paris Agreement. United Nations; United Nations.

https://www.un.org/en/climatechange/paris-agreement

Normann, H. E. (2015). The role of politics in sustainable transitions: The rise and decline of
offshore wind in Norway. Environmental Innovation and Societal Transitions, 15, 180–193.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eist.2014.11.002

Norwegian Shipowners’ Association. (2022). Maritime outlook 2022 [Outlook].

https://www.rederi.no/contentassets/a0a84c67c821473ba5f3ef127d219d28/maritimeoutlook2
022.pdf

Ocean Energy Resources | 4 2022. (2022). Issuu. https://issuu.com/offshorevisie/docs/oer_4-

2022_issuu/1

Okoro, A., Khan, F., & Ahmed, S. (2021). An Active Learning Polynomial Chaos Kriging
metamodel for reliability assessment of marine structures. Ocean Engineering, 235, 109399.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.oceaneng.2021.109399

Pagano, P., Antonelli, S., & Tardo, A. (2022). C-Ports: A proposal for a comprehensive
standardization and implementation plan of digital services offered by the “Port of the
Future.” Computers in Industry, 134, 103556. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compind.2021.103556

97
Palmer, J. (2021, September 9). Larger Wind Turbines: What does this mean for offshore
installation vessels? Offshore Construction Associates. https://offshoreconstruct.com/larger-
wind-turbines-what-does-this-mean-for-offshore-installation-vessels/

Parola, F., Satta, G., Buratti, N., & Vitellaro, F. (2021). Digital technologies and business
opportunities for logistics centres in maritime supply chains. Maritime Policy &
Management, 48(4), 461–477. https://doi.org/10.1080/03088839.2020.1802784

Paterson, J., D’Amico, F., Thies, P. R., Kurt, R. E., & Harrison, G. (2018). Offshore wind
installation vessels – A comparative assessment for UK offshore rounds 1 and 2. Ocean
Engineering, 148, 637–649. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.oceaneng.2017.08.008

Polzin, F., Migendt, M., Täube, F. A., & von Flotow, P. (2015). Public policy influence on
renewable energy investments—A panel data study across OECD countries. Energy Policy,
80, 98–111. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enpol.2015.01.026

Poulsen, T., & Lema, R. (2017). Is the supply chain ready for the green transformation? The case
of offshore wind logistics. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 73, 758–771.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rser.2017.01.181

PWEA. (6/22). Offshore wind vessel availability until 2030: Baltic Sea and Polish perspective
[Final report]. https://windeurope.org/wp-
content/uploads/files/policy/topics/offshore/Offshore-wind-vessel-avaiability-until-2030-
report-june-2022.pdf

Raza, Z., Woxenius, J., Vural, C. A., & Lind, M. (2023). Digital transformation of maritime
logistics: Exploring trends in the liner shipping segment. Computers in Industry, 145,
103811. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compind.2022.103811

Renewables—Siem Offshore. (n.d.). Retrieved April 24, 2023, from

https://www.siemoffshore.com/fleet/renewables

Rotmans, J., & Loorbach, D. (2009). Complexity and Transition Management. Journal of
Industrial Ecology, 13(2), 184–196. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1530-9290.2009.00116.x

Roux, J.-P., Fitch-Roy, O., Devine-Wright, P., & Ellis, G. (2022). “We could have been leaders”:
The rise and fall of offshore wind energy on the political agenda in Ireland. Energy Research
& Social Science, 92, 102762. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.erss.2022.102762

Sharma, M., Joshi, S., Prasad, M., & Bartwal, S. (2023). Overcoming barriers to circular economy
implementation in the oil & gas industry: Environmental and social implications. Journal of
Cleaner Production, 391, 136133. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2023.136133

98
Shojaeddini, E., Naimoli, S., Ladislaw, S., & Bazilian, M. (2019). Oil and gas company strategies
regarding the energy transition. Progress in Energy, 1(1), 012001.
https://doi.org/10.1088/2516-1083/ab2503

Sletten, S., Wangen Jonasmo, K., & Solheim, M. C. W. (2023). Changing industrial trajectories
through business model innovation: A case study of the oil and gas industry in Norway.
European Planning Studies, 0(0), 1–20. https://doi.org/10.1080/09654313.2023.2185503

Solstad Renewable. (n.d.). Solstad Offshore ASA. Retrieved April 24, 2023, from
https://www.solstad.com/vessel-type/renewable/

SOV | CSOV | W2W | ISV - Windfarm support vessels. (n.d.). Ulstein. Retrieved April 23, 2023,
from https://ulstein.com/ship-design/offshore-wind

Spielmann, V., Brey, T., Dannheim, J., Vajhøj, J., Ebojie, M., Klein, J., & Eckardt, S. (2021).
Integration of sustainability, stakeholder and process approaches for sustainable offshore
wind farm decommissioning. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 147, 111222.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rser.2021.111222

Stalmokaitė, I., & Yliskylä-Peuralahti, J. (2019). Sustainability Transitions in Baltic Sea Shipping:
Exploring the Responses of Firms to Regulatory Changes. Sustainability, 11(7), Article 7.
https://doi.org/10.3390/su11071916

Subsea 7. (n.d.). Subsea7 Corporate2018. Retrieved April 24, 2023, from

https://www.subsea7.com/en/our-business/what-we-do.html

Subsea rock installation vessels. (n.d.). Ulstein. Retrieved April 23, 2023, from
https://ulstein.com/ship-design/subsea-rock-installation

Teece, D. J., Pisano, G., & Shuen, A. (1997). Dynamic capabilities and strategic management.
Strategic Management Journal, 18(7), 509–533. https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1097-
0266(199708)18:7<509::AID-SMJ882>3.0.CO;2-Z

Thematic Analysis—An overview | ScienceDirect Topics. (n.d.). Retrieved May 5, 2023, from
https://www-sciencedirect-com.ezproxy1.usn.no/topics/social-sciences/thematic-analysis

Tusar, M. I. H., & Sarker, B. R. (2023). Developing the optimal vessel fleet size and mix model to
minimize the transportation cost of offshore wind farms. Ocean Engineering, 274, 114041.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.oceaneng.2023.114041

Ulstein. (n.d.). Windfarm support vessels. Ulstein. Retrieved April 23, 2023, from
https://ulstein.com/ship-design/offshore-wind

Van Kleef, J. A. G., & Roome, N. J. (2007). Developing capabilities and competence for
sustainable business management as innovation: A research agenda. Journal of Cleaner
Production, 15(1), 38–51. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2005.06.002
99
Varela-Vázquez, P., Sánchez-Carreira, M. del C., & Rodil-Marzábal, Ó. (2019). A novel systemic
approach for analysing offshore wind energy implementation. Journal of Cleaner
Production, 212, 1310–1318. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2018.12.079

Vessel type by clarkson. (2023). https://www.clarksons.net/n/#/sin/register#Fleet/Fleet/Vessel-

Type

Wiles, R., Crow, G., Heath, S., & Charles, V. (2006). Anonymity and Confidentiality.

Williams, R., Zhao, F., & Lee, J. (2022). Global offshore wind report 2022. Global Wind Energy
Council. https://gwec.net/gwecs-global-offshore-wind-report/

Wind energy – going offshore. (n.d.). DNV. Retrieved April 20, 2023, from
https://www.dnv.com/to2030/CH_Page/Default

Appendix 1- interview guide

Introduction

1. Could you briefly introduce yourself, your background and your current position?

2. Can you tell us briefly about your company and your experience in the offshore wind
industry?

Drivers

3. What are your interests in offshore wind and what is your motivation for going into
offshore wind?

4. What are some of the opportunities you see in the offshore wind industry for your company?

5. What steps have you taken or are you considering taking to enter the market?

Success factors

6. In your experience, what do you think are the key factors for a successful transition from
oil and gas to offshore wind?

7. What measures or strategies have you implemented to ensure a successful transition and
how have these worked for you so far?

Concluding questions

8. How do you envision the role of Norwegian offshore shipping companies in the global
offshore wind industry?

9. Is there anything else you would like to add that might be useful to know?

100